Berkeley Hills fire raises concerns about inaccessible escape route due to locked gate

"I came up here onto my deck and saw flames over those cypress trees over there. They were very high. We knew something, a fire was happening, and it was close. It's wild because I think we are still technically in winter, and this is just wild that this happened."

"The gate was locked. The code we thought we were to use as neighbor didn't work. When we reached that conclusion, it was absolutely terrifying because at that point, we knew we can't leave in a car. The fire is that way."

"Living in the Berkeley Hills we are very aware of the risk of fire. But this time, the problem is: How to get out? The road was blocked due to the fire activity. The other way is a small path that leads to the UC Berkeley Lawrence Hall of Science parking lot, which is supposed to be an escape route for this neighborhood."

A two-alarm fire broke out in the Berkeley Hills before 4 a.m., destroying one home and damaging another. All residents evacuated safely, though one tenant had just moved in days earlier. The Berkeley Fire Department responded quickly to the scene. Beyond the immediate property damage, the incident exposed critical safety vulnerabilities in the neighborhood's emergency preparedness. When the primary road became blocked by fire activity, residents attempted to use an alternate escape route through a gate leading to the UC Berkeley Lawrence Hall of Science parking lot. However, the gate was locked and the access code provided to neighbors did not function, trapping residents and preventing vehicle evacuation during the active fire emergency.

Read at ABC7 San Francisco