Fire Shuts Down BART Service From East Bay to S.F.

BART service to San Francisco was shut down after a fire involving multiple structures damaged tracks at the West Oakland BART station, officials said.

According to a BART dispatcher, there will be no service through the Transbay Tube until the tracks are repaired and BART is advising commuters to find an alternate route.

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BART is attempting to set up bus service between the MacArthur station in Oakland and the Embarcadero station in San Francisco, however during commute hours all buses are occupied on other routes so it may not be possible to add any transbay buses in addition to the routes regularly offered by AC Transit.

The West Oakland BART station is closed, and BART is looking to set up extra bus routes between the West Oakland station and the 12th Street station for commuters who need to travel between the two. The fire, near the corner of Seventh Street and Mandela Parkway, was first reported at 2:15 a.m., a fire dispatcher said. Flames spread to neighboring buildings, lampposts and elevated BART tracks, so firefighters shut down power to the tracks, fire officials said.

As a precaution, PG&E shut down service to nine customers in the area of Fifth Street and Mandela Parkway, PG&E spokesman J.D. Guidi said. The fire damaged electrical infrastructure ,including several utility poles, and PG&E repair crews were on their way to the scene as of around 4:30 a.m., however they will not be able to begin repairs until after the fire is controlled.

There is no estimated time for restoring power in that area, Guidi said. Multiple agencies have responded to the fire, and a California Highway Patrol helicopter is providing aerial support.