Page One

SAN LEANDRO – San Leandro officials have shut down a Kmart store after a large portion of the roof collapsed early Monday morning. 

According to Battalion Chief Steve Brown of the Alameda County Fire Department, no serious injuries resulted from the collapse, which left the hole about the size of a house – or roughly 100 feet by 100 feet – on the roof of the store, located at 205 Floresta Blvd. 

Brown said there were five to six customers inside the store and 20 employees when the incident happened at about 8 a.m. Of those people, one seemed overwhelmed by the occurrence and was evaluated and released by paramedics at the scene, Brown said. 

The fire department responded to the scene at 8:12 a.m. with three engines, one truck and a battalion chief. It was soon joined by an ambulance, police officers and three building inspectors from the city of San Leandro, Brown said. 

Brown said the fire department was on scene for about two hours, helping store managers determine a plan of action. Meanwhile, as dictated by standard procedure, the store had its electricity and gas shut off. 

Brown said he does not know how long the closure will remain in effect.  

He said that although it was raining at the time of the collapse, there still has not been an official cause of the collapse has not been determined. 

That, Brown said, has to be determined by structural engineers, who along with city engineers, will have to see if the store will be reopened. 

Brown said that the store stands alone and there was no impact to other buildings in the area.