San Francisco fire crews battled a huge blaze and gas explosion on Geary Boulevard and Parker Avenue in the Richmond neighborhood on Wednesday afternoon.
The fire had burned parts of four buildings, including one that houses the Hong Kong Lounge II restaurant, a popular dim sum establishment and apartments in the upper floors.
Flames were seen soaring from underground and appeared to reach several stories in height.
#020629WF2 UPDATE 3ed Alarm Gas explosion (construction crew) 4 buildings involved 5 workers in accounted for evacuations 1 Block circumference (police and fire will knock at your door) media update by chief of Department at 1410 hrs at cook and Geary (media staging) pic.twitter.com/OZ3PyepFSN
— SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT (@SFFDPIO) February 6, 2019Workers on a private project had been installing fiber optic cable before the explosion, according to Fire Chief Joanne Hayes White. Officials believe that the workers ruptured a gas line.
The fire started around 1 p.m.
Hayes White said that no injuries had been reported and all workers have been located.
PG&E crews capped the gas line that was the source of the leaping flames around 3:40 p.m.
People nearby had been advised to keep their windows shut and remain indoors to avoid inhaling dangerous fumes, said Kristine Roselus, a spokeswoman for the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.
Reporters Margie Shafer and Megan Goldsby contributed to this article.
