The Vietnamese American Community Center of the East Bay, which has provided meals, education and immigration services to the Oakland community for more than two decades, was damaged by an overnight fire on Saturday.

Firefighters battle an early morning fire that burnt through parts of the Vietnamese American Community Center of the East Bay in Oakland, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. (Courtesy of the Oakland Fire Department) 

The fire at the two-story building on Clinton Square on 7th Avenue and International Boulevard was reported at about 1:11 a.m. Saturday morning, said Oakland Fire Department spokesman Michael Hunt.

By 1:40 a.m. about 35 firefighters had put out the flames, which damaged significant portions of the building. The extent of the destruction was still being determined but it was a “huge loss” for the surrounding neighborhood, Hunt said, citing the thousands of meals a week the center provides nearby residents in need. No one was injured in the fire.

Oakland Councilmember Nikki Fortunato Bas said on Twitter the fire was ” devastating for the Eastlake and Vietnamese community.” The fire comes a day before a Lunar New Year celebration at the park scheduled for Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., which is still expected to take place.

Hunt said they are aware of a long-standing encampment of unhoused residents in the back of the center’s building, but said they won’t know if that’s where the fire started until there has been a full investigation.

Jennifer Tran, executive director of the Oakland Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce, said on Saturday about 30 percent of the center was damaged in the fire, which “also destroyed the tents and the possessions of the unsheltered community who lives here, who are primarily Vietnamese immigrant men.”

OAKLAND, CA – FEBRUARY 6: A person walks past the Vietnamese American Community Center that burnt down in Oakland, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. The center provided meals, education and immigration services to the Oakland community for more than two decades.The fire comes a day before a Lunar New Year celebration at Clinton park scheduled for Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group) 

Nine unhoused residents were displaced in the fire, and Tran said her organization was working with the city of Oakland and other groups to help them find shelter, as well as working with businesses in the area so the Vietnamese American Community Center could continue the work it does for residents, particularly seniors in the neighborhood.

“This is a time for us to come together to find solutions on how could we keep each other safe,” Tran said.

Bas said on Twitter she’s working with community leaders to determine if the building can be used and repaired, as well as addressing homelessness in the city.

“We are assessing how many unhoused residents were displaced & supporting them,” Bas said on Twitter. “I’ve been advocating for housing (people) on public vacant land & buildings for everyone’s safety and dignity. Council will discuss homeless funding Monday.”

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