EARLY MORNING FIRE AT BIEN PADRE CAUSES $30K IN DAMAGE

The following is a press release from Humboldt Bay Fire:
 
At approximately 6:02 am on Thursday January 31st, Three Fire Engines, One Ladder Truck, and two Chief Officers from Humboldt Bay Fire were dispatched to a reported commercial structure fire at 1459 Railroad Ave. Upon arrival, the first due engine reported a single story metal building with nothing showing.
Employees on scene reported to fire crews that one of the tortilla chip frying machines was on fire. Crews entered the building and noted light to moderate smoke within and were able to locate the machine in question. The machine did have a small amount of fire showing from within, which the crews were able to extinguish with a dry chemical fire extinguisher. Crews remained on scene for approximately an hour to ventilate the structure and ensure that the fire was completely out. The fire was originally discovered by the production manager who had arrived at work earlier that morning.
Upon entering the building, she stated she smelled the smoke and began to investigate. She located the fire and initially attempted to fight the fire with extinguishers from the business. When she was unable to suppress the fire, she phoned 9-1-1.
Damage was confined to the machine of origin, causing approximately $30,000 in damage. No one was injured in this incident. Cause of the fire is under investigation, but is not suspicious and is likely caused by a mechanical failure of the machine of origin.