San Francisco fire: Blaze rages through Fisherman's Wharf

Flames and thick, black smoke could be seen from across the city

A fire ripped through warehouses on Pier 45 in San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Flames and thick, black smoke could be seen from across the city when the alarm was raised at approximately 4.20am.

A quick response from San Francisco Fire Department, including a fireboat, managed to prevent the four-alarm blaze from spreading, but a quarter of the pier has been lost.

Fire crews were able to save nearby tourist areas and the SS Jeremiah O’Brien, a historic World War Two ship.

The fire is now contained. No injuries have been reported and there is no word yet of the cause of the blaze, believed to have started inside a warehouse.

The fire department says the fire caused a partial building collapse on the southern part of the pier, spread to two other buildings, and was in danger of spreading to a third.

A total of 145 firefighters responded to the emergency. Crews are expected to remain on site through the day.

Water 2 Table, a local business on the pier that supplies seafood to restaurants, says that the fire destroyed the building next door as well as $15,000 in equipment and three trucks.

With the power out, the company is worried about its inventory, as well as the longer term safety of the pier, home to 15 seafood businesses.

The company said on Instagram: "We are hoping we are not locked out or the safety of the pier and wood pilings are in question. If so this will be a true historical disaster for the local fishing industry."