Fire damages Modesto outbuilding, home

A fire that began early today in an outbuilding spread to an adjacent home, damaging one bedroom, according to the Modesto Fire Department.

The sole occupant of the home on the 300 block of Spruce Street escaped without injury, Battalion Chief Tim Tietjen said.

The fire occurred about 4:15 a.m. in what Tietjen described as a detached small garage or large shed. No one was in the building at the time, he said, though it was set up as living quarters and had been occupied as recently as last week.

Crews – four engines, one truck and a battalion chief – had the fire out within about 10 minutes of arriving, Tietjen said. The cause of the blaze is under investigation. He estimated damage to the outbuilding and home at $10,000.

Spruce Street is just southwest of downtown, several blocks south of Maze Boulevard and just east of Martin Luther King Drive.

This story was originally published July 30, 2015 at 8:37 AM with the headline "Fire damages Modesto outbuilding, home."