Peninsula Fire Displaces Family After 'Popping' Noise Is Heard: Fire Officials

BELMONT, CA – Belmont fire officials are crediting a working smoke detector with helping a family escape their burning home quickly.

The fire started around 10 p.m. Sunday at a home in the 2100 block of Lyon Avenue, according to Belmont Police Capt. Patrick Halleran.

"Upon arrival, first responders found that the family, a husband, wife and two children, a boy 10 and a girl 9, had evacuated and were unhurt," Halleran said in a news release. "The parents said that they heard a popping sound and shortly afterward the smoke detectors began to sound."

The parents, who saw smoke coming from the heater vents, grabbed the sleeping children, evacuated and called 911, Halleran said.

Fire crews from Belmont, San Mateo, Foster City and Cal Fire all responded to the scene. It took them about three hours to make sure the fire was completely extinguished, Halleran said.

"The fire, which appears to have started near the heater in the crawl space under the home, burned inside the walls and under the floor, making it difficult to find and extinguish," he said.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but officials believe it was accidental in nature. Damages were estimated at $150,000.

"This fire points out how important it is to have working smoke detectors and to quickly evacuate at the first sign of a fire," Halleran said.

Image credit: Belmont Fire Department