SAN FRANCISCO – A fire that damaged a hotel in San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood, injured one person and closed nearby streets has been completely extinguished, a fire department spokesman said Sunday morning.   

The fire at the Broadway Hotel at 2048 Polk St. was reported just after 6 a.m. and was swiftly knocked down, said San Francisco Fire Department spokesman Justin Schorr. Residents who were evacuated have returned and Broadway and Polk streets reopened around 8 a.m., he said.   

One person sustained minor injuries in the blaze. The victim had not been transported to the hospital as of early Sunday morning.   

After containing the blaze, firefighters remained on the scene until around 9 a.m. checking the building to ensure the blaze was completely out, Schorr said.   

The spokesman said that after swiftly knocking a fire down, one of the challenges is ensuring that all of the embers in older buildings like the hotel are chased down and there is no lingering threat.  

“A fire can double in size every 60 seconds,” the spokesman said. “It’s our goal to arrive quickly, knock down the fire and then do our investigation to determine if the fire has been completely extinguished.”   

Often, firefighters will extinguish the main fire and for a considerable time afterwards will be opening ceilings and floors to ensure the fire is completely extinguished, Schorr said.   

The cause of the fire is under investigation, Schorr said.     

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — One box at time, the life of civil rights activist Reverend Cecil Williams and his work at GLIDE Memorial Church is being chronicled at the San Francisco Public Library main branch.

“We’re very excited to have this collection because it documents this major institution that really broke barriers, serving vulnerable people in the city,” said Tami Suzuki, Municipal Records archivist.

MORE: Rev. Cecil Williams, longtime leader of SF’s GLIDE Foundation, dies at 94

The archives is comprised of documentation detailing GLIDE’s service in the Tenderloin neighborhood and to LGBTQ+ communities, as well as Williams’ influence on everyone from world leaders to rock stars.

“It Includes sermons from Cecil Williams, includes a lot of their Sunday celebration programs, photos of a lot of events and visitors to their programs,” explained Suzuki.

“It’s like you’re walking into that congressional archives. I mean, you see telegrams from presidents. You see incredible dialog about incredible civil rights action,” said Karl Robillard, chief communications and public affairs officer at GLIDE. “Cecil’s history is San Francisco’s history. He kind of carried a message of the day that I think was so significant, not just to GLIDE, but to San Francisco and beyond.

MORE: SF’s GLIDE reopens indoor dining for free meal program in Tenderloin District

And GLIDE is making sure the Williams message continues to be carried.

“Recognizing that this exhibit is bigger than GLIDE, we can’t just house this on the fifth floor in a corner office in the very back of the building,” said Robillard. “It needs to be public. People need to see it and feel it and experience it.”

Sunday is the memorial service for Reverend Cecil Williams who died last month at the age of 94. The service will be held at GLIDE at 1 p.m. and doors open at noon.

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OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) — The aurora borealis is headlining for a second night over the Bay Area, and the crowds continue to show up.

“I think it’s, like, magical. You think about it from when you’re a kid. You see pictures of it. And you just want to see it for real. I have never seen it for real. So, I thought the opportunity was too awesome to skip,” said Scott Zimmerman.

He and his family drove up from Mountain View, hoping to catch the northern lights from the viewing platform at the Chabot Space and Science Center up in the hills of Oakland.

“It’s pretty exciting. Kind of reminds us that we are part of a much bigger universe. And sometimes the universe talks back to us,” said Gerald McKeegan, an astronomer at Chabot.

Northern Lights dazzle over Bay Area skies as solar storm continues tonight

As he explains, the sun releases ionized gas. Those clouds, sometimes bigger than the actual sun, travel out into space. It’s interaction with the earth’s atmosphere produces the lights.

“I did get a chance to see it (Friday) night. When we look to the north from here at the Chabot Space and Science Center, we could see a faint reddish glow in the sky,” McKeegan said.

He says the sun in on an 11-year cycle, which means every 10 to 20 years, the northern lights become visible this far south.

“I have heard my father say he always wanted to see the northern lights. So, I had this dream that I would take him there. But it is over here, so it is good that he can see it,” said Preet Pratyusha.

The 14-year-old Pratyusha wants to be an astronomer. So she see this as special opportunity.

Astronomers say Saturday night’s cloud coverage won’t necessarily block the lights, but a rise in humidity from the clouds could cause a problem. And, the lights are too spread out to be seen using one of Chabot’s telescopes.

Incredible timelapse video captures Northern Lights over California during solar storm

“It is something that is unusual. You cannot see it anywhere else. It is kind of rare, so I just want to see it,” Pratyusha said.

McKeegan says the more intense the geomagnetic storm, the more chances there are of power outages and disruptions to electronics such as cellphones, TVs and radios.

“As far as I know, we have had none of that happen yet. But stayed tuned!” McKeegan said.

That’s because McKeegan says Sunday night will likely produce the most intense light show, because of a massive gas released Saturday morning that is headed towards earth.

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