Fire at packaging plant forces evacuation

Columbus Foods is working with investigators to determine the cause of a four-alarm fire on the morning of July 23, at the company's facility located at 465 Cabot Rd. in South San Francisco.

The fire started around 1:30 a.m. and burned for several hours. All employees were immediately evacuated from the facility and nobody was injured. The cause of the fire is unknown at this time and damage to the 40,000-square foot facility is being assessed. All other Columbus facilities in the area are unaffected.

"We are fortunate and grateful that all of our employees are safe and accounted for," said Columbus Foods CEO Ralph Denisco. "We thank the South San Francisco Fire Department and other local fire departments for their quick response to this emergency."

The facility on Cabot Road is used to slice and package Columbus Foods products. The company is working with vendors to ensure there is no significant disruption in its slicing and packaging services. This incident will likely cause some short-term shipment delays, but the impact will be limited.

"This facility is not used to create Columbus Foods products and there is no impact to the product itself," noted Denisco. "We expect there will be minimal disruption in the distribution of our products to stores."

Columbus Foods has been a mainstay of the San Francisco meat industry for more than 90 years, originating the North Beach community of San Francisco. It produces a wide range of quality deli meat and cured meat products.

Source: Columbus Foods