Humboldt Bay Fire Releases Info on Early-Morning Fire on H Street in Eureka
Press release from Humboldt Bay Fire:
On Saturday, January 31st, 2026, at approximately 1:21 am., Humboldt Bay Fire was dispatched to a reported structure fire at the 800 block of H St. Humboldt Bay Fire responded with three engines, one ladder truck, and a Battalion Chief.
Battalion 8104 was the first arriving unit and found smoke coming from a two-story multi unit residence in the process of being renovated. Truck 8181 and E8114 arrived next and Crews pulled a hose lines and set up large volume deck mounted nozzles and quickly initiated fire attack. B8104 requested a second alarm upon initial radio report and 2 more engines came to the scene along with three additional chief officers. The entire second story was completely engulfed in flames within 2 minutes of arrival for fire department personnel. The fire was extinguished. The building was structurally unstable after the fire and it has been demolished. Ongoing clean up efforts will be underway.
Two coverage engines were requested and they ran medical calls and other alarms while the fire was being extinguished. Additionally, City Ambulance provided a standby unit and PGE gas and Electric responded to the scene to evaluate utilities. Humboldt Bay Fire thanks Arcata Fire, Loleta Fire, Samoa Fire, CAL FIRE and all our partnering agencies for their valued support.
The cause and origin investigation are ongoing and anyone who has any knowledge of the cause of the fire is encouraged to call the Eureka Police Department non-emergency number at 707- 441-4060. No civilian or firefighter injuries occurred, and damage is estimated at $350,000. Several pieces of equipment and trailers along with neighboring structures were all saved due to fire suppression efforts.
Humboldt Bay Fire reminds every one of the importance of contacting the authorities when unauthorized persons are seen at construction sites, especially when work is not being done.
Earlier:[UPDATE 8:57 a.m.] Early-Morning Fire at Vacant Multi-Family Building on H Street in Eureka
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Cooked
So what is the legal limit as to how many apartments the new building can have?
…..and the neighborhood breathed a sigh of relief. The “renovations” were nothing more than a scam to get the owner off the hook for holding a red-tagged building, so it could theoretically be added to the property value. They were not to make the building habitable in any meaningful way. There is no way that the structure was worth $350k. The entire property was on the market for $500k in 2018 and failed to sell. The “renovators” disposed of lead-contaminated construction waste by crushing it into the soil in the yard of the building. The City of Eureka was informed about that situation and chose to do nothing.
The City’s failure deal with the issues at that property in a timely manner is the cause of the current situation, with multiple, unnecessary hazmat issues.