By Khalida Sarwari
A fire at a home in San Jose this morning caused an estimated $50,000 in damage and displaced four people, a fire department spokeswoman said.
A man who lives in the 4000 block of Holycon Circle called 911 at about 11 a.m. and reported that something on the second story of the home was on fire, fire Capt. Mary Gutierrez said.
Firefighters arrived to find thick black smoke on the first and second floors of the house, Gutierrez said.
There was no visibility inside the house, and firefighters had to cut a hole in the roof for ventilation, she said.
Flames were contained to a loft area of the second floor, and the fire was under control by about 11:30 a.m.
Gutierrez said the fire might have been caused by an electrical malfunction in an area where computers were plugged in.
The resident, who was alone in the house at the time, got out of the home safely and was not harmed. Gutierrez said the man was downstairs when he heard the smoke detector go off.
“He’s fortunate he had a working smoke alarm,” she said.
The fire displaced the man, two other adults and one teen, Gutierrez said. The American Red Cross was called for assistance.
Neighboring homes were not affected.
The home sustained heavy smoke damage, Gutierrez said.
