Oakley: Senior apartment complex burns, but sprinklers keep fire from spreading

OAKLEY -- An automatic indoor sprinkler system kept a fire at an apartment complex for seniors from spreading, and fire personnel were able to evacuate residents before anybody was seriously injured, a fire chief said.

Two residents were treated for smoke inhalation at the scene but refused hospital treatment after the fire Monday at the Oaks Apartments complex at 59 Carol Lane, said Chief Hugh Henderson of the East Contra Costa Fire District. Fire crews were called to the blaze at 4:18 p.m. and found light smoke coming from a hallway in the complex, he said.

Several tenants were out of the complex or evacuating when fire crews arrived, Henderson said. Fire crews assisted those who needed help, he said.

Automatic sprinklers kept the fire contained to one room within a unit, Henderson said, and the water from the sprinklers damaged six other units, as well as an electrical room, a computer room, two bathrooms and a community room.

Henderson said investigators have not determined how the fire started.

Contact Rick Hurd at 925-945-4789 and follow him at Twitter.com/3rderh.

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Oakley: Senior apartment complex burns, but sprinklers keep fire from spreading