A brush fire consumed 58 acres in the area of westbound Interstate 580 and Eden Canyon in Castro Valley Monday.
It all started around 5 p.m. with a car fire that quickly spread through the vegetation.
Flames were only feet away from dozens of homes off of Schaefer Ranch Road in neighboring Dublin and families were seen running in and out as they filled their vehicles with their belongings, getting ready to flee.
“I panicked and I kept asking, ‘what can I do to help? What should I pack up?’” said resident Brandon Ta.
Crews responded quickly from all angles. Many of them had just arrived from the fires up north caused by a series of lighting strikes.
“Some came back this morning, some came back last night, but here they are,” said Battalion Chief Bryan Goff of Cal Fire.