Three structure fires within 24 hours in Modesto area

A house fire on Bodem Street near Downey Avenue early Monday was the third Modesto-area structure fire in 24 hours, the Modesto Fire Department reported.

At 5:30 a.m. Monday, Modesto crews responded to a fire in a back house on the Bodem Street property. Firefighters determined the residence was empty and quickly put out the blaze. The cause is under investigation, and damage is estimated at $40,000, according to a news release from department spokeswoman Jessica Smart. Three Modesto engines, one squad, a truck company and two battalion chiefs – one from the Stanislaus Consolidated Fire District – responded.

Shortly after 11:30 Sunday night, Modesto and Stanislaus Consolidated crews were dispatched to a fire at a detached garage in the 100 block of Rosina Avenue, just off Yosemite Boulevard west of Empire Avenue. Encountering heavy smoke, firefighters forced open a door and cut through the roll-up door to extinguish the blaze and protect adjacent structures. Damage was estimated at $25,000. From the MFD, one squad, three engines, one truck company and a battalion chief responded. Stanislaus Consolidated sent a battalion chief and an engine.

And at about 8:45 Sunday morning, Modesto and Ceres firefighters responded to a reported structure fire in the 1100 block of Robertson Road, near Pine Tree Lane in west Modesto. Crews found a large shed or detached garage on fire. Neighbors reported that a transient had been staying inside, Smart said, so the structure was searched. No one was inside, and crews were able to contain the fire to the structure and protect neighboring buildings.

Three Modesto engines, a truck company and a battalion chief responded, as did a Ceres battalion chief. Once the fire was out, said Smart, it was determined the fire was within the Burbank-Paradise Fire Protection District, so that agency assumed control of the scene.

This story was originally published November 2, 2015 at 11:00 AM with the headline "Three structure fires within 24 hours in Modesto area."