Fire may have damaged key Apple R&D building


15 Aug, 2008
By Ed Oswald

A three-alarm fire swept through a building at the Cupertino company, damaging the roof and the second floor of the building known as "Valley Green Six."

Approximately 60 firefighters battled the blaze, which was first reported to the authorities around 10:00 pm local time Tuesday. The fire was contained about 2 1/2 hours later.

There were no injuries, and anyone left in the building was safely evacuated. In a sign of the times, the San Jose Mercury News reported there were even Apple employees stopping by to take pictures on their iPhones.

Santa Clara County Fire Dispatcher Rafael Salcedo told the Associated Press that although the fire was not large, "there is going to be a lot of smoke damage." It is believed that the fire may have started under an air conditioning unit on the second floor.

The fire may be potentially painful to Apple, as Valley Green Six is an important building on the company's campus. According to AppleInsider, it its home to research and development on future hardware products, although that is being disputed elsewhere.

BetaNews is attempting to confirm this with Apple, although no response had been received as of press time.

Due to Apple's secretive nature, it may never be known whether the company lost anything of substance in the blaze. Officials were unable to provide any estimate as to damages to the building.

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