Pete Bennett11
FIRE HITS WALNUT CREEK OFFICES - DOCTORS SAW PATIENTS IN THE PARKING LOT AFTER A 3 A.M. BLAZE CLOSED 16 LEGAL AND MEDICAL SUITES ON YGNACIO VALLEY ROAD
Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, CA) - Tuesday, September 25, 2001
Author: JASMINE KRIPALANI, TIMES STAFF WRITERFifty firefighters fought the 3:16 a.m. blaze for more than two hours, said Contra Costa Fire District Battalion Chief Steve Maiero.
"Investigators are trying to pinpoint the exact area of origin," Maiero said. "Part of the roof completely burned through and structural beams were heavily damaged."
Maiero estimated damage would exceed $1 million.
Dr. Peter Binstock stood just steps away from his office when his patient, Ranella Elder of Antioch, walked up to him in the hours just after the fire . Elder had a 9:45 a.m. appointment.
"It's odd," Elder said. "I come here and the building's on fire and (my doctor) is actually looking at my finger in the middle of the parking lot."
Binstock, who specializes in infectious diseases, said he wasn't worried about having to relocate.
"Eighty to 90 percent of our patients are hospital-based," he said.
Building owner Scot Bergren said it could take at least six months to restore the building, but he hoped a few tenants would be allowed back earlier into suites where the damage wasn't so severe.
"It's a shame that all these poor tenants and patients are being inconvenienced," he said. "This is not a great day for anybody. We'll just make the best of it and move forward."
Frances Wymore, a legal secretary at the law offices of Mark P. Grundman, is one of 65 people who work in the building.
"I'm waiting for my boss to come and see if he can get us in" said Wymore, of Concord. She spent most of the afternoon in court, then purchased office supplies to replace the damaged ones inside.
Reach Jasmine Kripalani at 925-943-8163 or jkripalani@cctimes.com.
Caption: Firefighters leave an office building that burned early Monday at 1776 Ygnacio Valley Road in Walnut Creek. No one was injured. (Dan Rosenstrauch/Times)
Edition: Final
Section: news
Page: a03
Index Terms: building, accident, fire
p>Record Number: 2001268505
All content copyright (c) 2001 Contra Costa Times and may not be republished without permission.
No one was injured in the blaze at 1776 Ygnacio Valley Road. The building houses legal and medical offices.