By Chris De Benedetti
The Hayward Daily Review
SAN LEANDRO, Calif. — Firefighters came upon a marijuana grow operation while responding a two-alarm fire shortly after midnight that damaged a business’ electrical equipment, authorities said.
Next door to the fire, crews discovered a grow site and 300 marijuana plants with a street value of about $65,000, police Sgt. Mike Sobek said.
Firefighters also found marijuana harvesting equipment worth about $20,000, he said.
At 12:07 a.m. Tuesday, 33 firefighters responded to a call reporting a fire at a business at 645 143rd Avenue, near Washington Avenue, Alameda County fire spokeswoman Aisha Knowles said.
Firefighters discovered smoke coming from the roof vents and faced heavy smoke when they entered the building, she said.
They used seven fire engines, two trucks, and one heavy-rescue vehicle to extinguish the blaze in 20 minutes, Knowles said.
No injuries were reported.
Firefighters discovered the marijuana after entering the warehouse to determine if the fire had spread and to search for possible victims, Sobek said.
They called San Leandro police, who have started an investigation, he said.
No arrests have been made and a cause of the fire has not been determined.
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