Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Forensics
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
Flash floods kill 2 in New Jersey, strand subway riders in NYC Chevron right
Tropical rainstorm soaks Florida, could strengthen in Gulf before targeting Louisiana Chevron right

Columbus, OH

90°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

90°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Forensics

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars
Air Quality Alert

News / Weather News

Enormous 4-alarm fire destroys part of Pier 45 in San Francisco

By Chaffin Mitchell, AccuWeather staff writer

Published May 23, 2020 2:18 PM EDT

Copied

A four-alarm warehouse fire broke out early Saturday morning, May 23, on Pier 45 in San Francisco, California.

San Francisco firefighters responded to a four-alarm fire at a warehouse on Pier 45 at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco on Saturday morning, the San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) said.

A total of 145 firefighters responded to the scene, located at Taylor and Jones streets after the fire erupted sometime before 4:40 a.m. PDT. A quarter of the pier has "been lost to the flames," SFFD officials said, while the warehouse, where the fire was sparked, "is a “total loss,” KGO-TV reported.

The situation "evolved rapidly" from a one-alarm fire to a four alarm, San Francisco Fire Lt. Jonathan Baxter told KGO-TV. Evacuations were underway at adjacent commercial warehouses during the fire, and fire crews were evacuated when walls began collapsing in the warehouse, Baxter reported.

“It was dry at the time of the fire with light winds at the airport, roughly 5-10 mph. However, the airport is not extremely close in proximity to Pier 45 where the fire erupted,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski said.

Firefighters battling the four-alarm fire as the sun rises in San Fransisco on Saturday morning. Image via Twitter/dwhly

The fire was considered contained as of 11:30 a.m. PDT, but firefighters are expected to remain on the scene through the holiday weekend to monitor hotspots.

Stronger winds kicked up over the Bay Area on Saturday afternoon and placed the pier in danger of further damage.

"Wind gusts at the airport were in the range of 30 to 35 mph just hours after the fire was contained," AccuWeather Meteorologist Mary Gilbert said.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

The SS Jeremiah O'Brien ship was also threatened by the fire as well as other structures. The O'Brien ship is one of two remaining fully functioning Liberty ships launched during World War II. Specifically, the ship is a rare survivor of the fleet that stormed Normandy on D-Day.

“We want to thank SF Fire for their quick and effective response to the structure fire. We are assessing the situation and we will update everyone when we know more,” SS Jeremiah O'Brien, National Liberty Ship Memorial posted on Facebook. 

Later on Saturday, the memorial posted an update stating "We can confirm the O'Brien remains intact and doing well. This is only because of the rapid response of our amazing SF Firefighters and Fireboats."

Videos from the scene were posted to social media showing the flames illuminating the dark sky and billowing smoke during the early morning hours on Saturday.

Good morning San Francisco. #SFFD units have been on scene at Pier 45 since 4am this morning working on a 4th alarm #fire. They will be here for a while. Please avoid the area #yoursffd pic.twitter.com/VsslRhCV0Q

— San Francisco Firefighters 798 (@SFFFLocal798) May 23, 2020

Heat and smoke from the fire could be seen from space shown by the National Weather Service in the Bay Area.

Heat from a large fire at Pier 45 in San Francisco can be seen (black squares) in satellite imagery taken from space early Saturday morning. pic.twitter.com/WpUNrC77Tl

— NWS Bay Area 🌉 (@NWSBayArea) May 23, 2020

Pydynowski said conditions will still be breezy Sunday and Monday but not as windy. There is a potential for gusts reaching 20-25 mph each afternoon.

“Going forward, it will be dry this weekend into next week there and turning warmer starting Monday,” Pydynowski said.

Related:

'Disaster fatigue' could threaten hurricane preparedness
Here they come: 17-year cicadas to emerge in 3 states this spring, summer
What’s expected for the 2020 California wildfire season?

The cause and origin of the fire remain unclear at this time. Investigators are on scene working to determine what sparked the fire.

Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.

Report a Typo
Comments that don't add to the conversation may be automatically or manually removed by Facebook or AccuWeather. Profanity, personal attacks, and spam will not be tolerated.
Comments
Hide Comments

Weather News

Weather News

Inside the grueling recovery effort after Texas’ deadly flood

Jul. 15, 2025
Severe Weather

Flash flooding swamps Northeast metro areas as extreme rain threatens ...

Jul. 15, 2025
Weather Forecasts

Flood-weary Texas finally drying out, but near 100-degree heat looms

Jul. 15, 2025
Weather News

The Deadliest Floods in Texas History: A State at Risk

Jul. 14, 2025
video

Before-and-after pictures show devastation caused by Texas floods

Jul. 9, 2025
Severe Weather

Severe weather to rumble in the central US through the holiday weekend

Jul. 6, 2025
Weather News

Record sargassum seaweed piles up on Caribbean islands, Gulf

Jul. 2, 2025
Weather News

Alabama teen in ICU after lightning strike hits boat, causing burns an...

Jul. 2, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

Top Stories

Weather News

Inside the grueling recovery effort after Texas’ deadly flood

4 hours ago

Weather Forecasts

Flood-weary Texas finally drying out, but near 100-degree heat looms

43 minutes ago

Hurricane

Tropical Rainstorm to drench Florida, Gulf Coast

50 minutes ago

Weather News

Grand Canyon fires force closures

10 hours ago

Weather Forecasts

Flash flood dangers far from over as storms reload across US

1 hour ago

More Stories

Featured Stories

Astronomy

Noctilucent clouds shimmer in summer sky

1 day ago

Recreation

Yellowstone’s landscape shifts again with discovery of new hot pool

1 day ago

Weather News

Orcas are bringing humans gifts of food – but why?

4 days ago

Weather News

Giant shoes found spark mystery around the soldiers of ancient Rome

1 day ago

Weather News

It’s not just humans – chimpanzees also like to follow trends

1 day ago

AccuWeather Weather News Enormous 4-alarm fire destroys part of Pier 45 in San Francisco
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...