A cannabis grow camp in East Oakland went bust early on the morning of April twentieth. up in smoke.
The fire broke out shortly after 4:20 a.m. in an occupied mobile home parked directly in front of the warehouse at 1000 fortieth Avenue in East Oakland. Ten fire engines and nearly 60 firefighters responded to the three-alarm blaze and had it contained by 6:05 a.m., Oakland Fire Department spokesman Michael Hunt said.
No injuries were reported.
Juana Ochoa lives two houses away from the cannabis cultivation facility. She woke up this morning to banging noises and initially thought that somebody was setting off fireworks on the road. When she opened her front door to look outside, she saw the RV on her street burst into flames.
Ochoa watched because the flames climbed toward the ability cables hanging overhead between two streetlights. The wires began emitting sparks, she said, after which fell onto the warehouse, which then caught fire.
Ochoa, who has lived on this street together with her family for 20 years, said she often sees among the homeless people living in RVs parked on her street and lighting fires to maintain warm.
“Often they leave the fires burning all night and walk away,” Ochoa said. “Here you are – putting everyone at risk and look what happens.”
It is unclear whether the cannabis cultivation site was legally permitted. A security official on the scene said the owners had just began their business.
Marijuana is legal in California, but business owners must obtain licenses and permits to grow the plant commercially.
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