San Jose Firefighters Battle Blaze at Apparent Marijuana Grow House

A house fire in San Jose Thursday morning may have started because the home's residents were growing marijuana, a fire captain said.

The fire in the 25000 block of Brahms Avenue was reported at 10:14 a.m., San Jose fire Capt. Mike Van Elgort said.

Firefighters arrived to find 10- to 12-foot flames in the front garage extending into the first floor of the two-story home, Van Elgort said.

The fire was controlled at about 11 a.m., but the home was left with damage throughout, including extensive charring on the first floor, Van Elgort said.

Firefighters then found the bedrooms had been used for growing marijuana. Police were called to investigate any potential crimes, Van Elgort said. They were seen removing marijuana-growing paraphernalia from the home along with dozens of pot plants.

"In San Jose, in the last couple of years, we’ve seen a lot of these houses used to grow marijuana,” Van Elgort said.

One person was home when the fire broke out and managed to escape safely. She and the two other people who live there will be displaced, Van Elgort said.

Firefighters also rescued four small dogs, which were uninjured.

It appears that the fire started with an electrical problem, possibly related to the marijuana-growing operation, Van Elgort said.

Thursday’s fire led to a neighborhood-wide power outage. PG&E shut down power to the entire area after dangerous electrical wiring was found inside the house.
 

Bay City News contributed to this report.

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