Fireworks appear to spark house fire that displaced 11

Fireworks appear to have caused a fire that burned an East San Jose home Saturday afternoon, displacing 11 people, including five children, according to fire officials.

At about 1:35 p.m., fire officials responded to a home in the 1600 block of Miami Drive after receiving a report of a house fire, according to fire Capt. Mike Van Elgort.

Initial reports said the home’s residents were still inside, however firefighters determined all the residents had self evacuated the home.

Firefighters were eventually able to bring the blaze under control by about 2:40 p.m., Van Elgort said.

No injuries were reported.

The fire appears to have started outside but then quickly spread to inside the home. Firefighters learned children were seen playing with fireworks near the home just prior to the fire, according to Van Elgort.

Investigators believe the blaze was caused accidentally by the fireworks. Van Elgort said:

“We understand many people are celebrating Chinese New Year but fireworks are illegal in San Jose. It doesn’t take much to find an ignition source and unfortunately a family lost their home due to this.”

The Red Cross is assisting the displaced residents.