Crime & Safety
Heroic Bartender Evacuates Fiddler's Green As 3-Alarm Fire Burns
The San Francisco bartender then went through the residential units to make sure everyone was out.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA — A bartender at an Irish pub in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood is being credited with helping evacuate several patrons during a 3-alarm fire Monday night.
The fire broke out at about 11:50 p.m. at a three-story building at 1333 Columbus Ave., fire officials said.
The Irish pub Fiddler's Green is located on the building's first floor and part of the second while the rest of the building is residential units.
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According to fire spokesman Lt. Jonathan Baxter, upon learning from a patron that there was fire on an upper floor, the pub's bartender began evacuating patrons.
"He did a phenomenal job making sure that people got out," Baxter said.
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The pub sustained what appeared to be moderate damage, according to Baxter.
At least nine people were displaced in the fire. Four of those were residents of the three-story building. The
remaining five were tourists staying at a nearby Airbnb. They were temporarily displaced due to the smell of smoke and relocated to a hotel.
One firefighter suffered minor injuries. He was treated on scene, according to Baxter.
The American Red Cross is assisting those who were displaced in the blaze.District 2 Supervisor Catherine Stefani was on the scene observing the blaze and helping those displaced.
During today's Board of Supervisors meeting, Stefani commended the fire department and the Police Department, the Red Cross and the first responders at the scene. She also thanked the bartender who helped lead the pub's patrons to safety.
"When the smoke and heat appeared, the bartender, Rob Biasotti, got all patrons out of the first floor and then went through the units in the building, successfully evacuating everybody. He is really a true hero for
that," Stefani said.
She also wished the injured firefighter a full and speedy recovery. "I was extremely impressed by how our departments handled the fire last night," she said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, Baxter said.
— Bay City News; Image via SFFD
