Part of San Francisco’s iconic pier was destroyed today as flames started ravaging the area from 4:17 AM local time. Over 125 San Francisco firefighters are currently battling the four-alarm warehouse fire on Pier 45. A quarter of the pier at Fisherman’s Wharf has already been destroyed, and the fire caused a partial building collapse on the southern end of the pier, but fortunately no one has been injured.
The historic SS Jeremiah O’Brien ship, built during WWII, was threatened by the flames, but the St. Francis fireboat came to its rescue.
“When firefighters arrived,” said Jonathan Baxter, a spokesman for the fire department, “the flames were literally lapping over the Jeremiah O’Brien. They literally saved the O’Brien.”
During this fire at pier45, the SS Jeremiah O'Brien a Liberty ship built during World War II and named after the American Revolutionary War ship captain Jeremiah O'Brien was saved from burning. pic.twitter.com/ykhY3rKCex
— Reyna Harvey (@ReynaHarveyB) May 23, 2020
It also appears that the fire has been successfully contained to one section of the pier. According to Baxter, “The fire is no longer in danger of spreading and is contained to one area of the pier. Multiple walls of the building have collapsed. No injuries have been reported and at least 130 firefighters are at the scene working to safely contain the fire.”
Although the fire has been contained, it is not likely to be fully extinguished for several hours. The cause of the fire is not yet known, CNN reports, but the warehouse in which it began contained a large fish processing operation.