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South of Campus fire guts apartment building

By Robert Sanders

A two-alarm fire early this morning (Thursday, March 8) in a three-story apartment building at 2227 Dwight Way gutted six apartments and displaced as many as nine residents, five of whom are confirmed to be UC Berkeley students, according to the campus’s student affairs office.

Where to find help

UC Berkeley Dean of Students Office: (510) 642-6741 (Students affected by the fire need to notify this office first, and will then be connected to all resources, including replacement of Cal 1 cards.)

Student Housing Office: (510) 642-4108 (For help with housing and meals)

Financial Aid Office: (510) 642-6442/643-9157 or visit 211 Sproul Hall (For emergency loans and grants)

City of Berkeley: (510) 981-5900

American Red Cross: (510) 595-4400

Tang Center: (510) 642-9494  (Counseling and psychological services, and for help managing effect of fire on life issues, such as academic progress)

No injuries were reported from the fire, which broke out around 4 a.m. and took firefighters nearly four hours to put out. Four neighboring apartment buildings were evacuated until structural engineers can evaluate their integrity, the Berkeley Fire Department told the San Jose Mercury News.

UC Berkeley officials have arranged temporary housing in the residence halls for two of the displaced students, according to Dean of Students Jonathan Poullard. Three others have arranged to stay with friends until they can find new housing. Displaced students also are being offered meals in the Crossroads Dining Commons.

Any other displaced students should call the student affairs office directly at (510) 642-6741 for assistance. The office can also help coordinate with other resources (see list) as well as with the Red Cross on replacement of clothing and other belongings.

By midday, Dwight Way had reopened to traffic at the scene of the fire, which is located between Fulton and Ellsworth streets.

This morning’s conflagration was the second apartment fire to affect students in the past few months in the South of Campus area. A Nov. 18, 2011, fire in a complex at Telegraph Avenue and Haste Street destroyed 39 units and displaced dozens of students