Lafayette fireplace forces evacuations, burns tennis membership

Lafayette residents were ordered to evacuate Sunday over a wildfire that severely damaged a tennis club, officials said.

The roughly two-acre fire burned near Camino Diablo and Springbrook Road north of Highway 24 on the east side of Lafayette. Residents on the north and south sides of the freeway east of Pleasant Hill Road were ordered to evacuate and were allowed to return between 4:40 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.

The fire broke out after 2 p.m., badly damaged the main building and destroyed two outbuildings of the Lafayette Tennis Club on the Camino Diablo, said Captain George Laing, a spokesman for the Contra Costa County fire protection district. The fire also damaged the roof and chimney of a house, Laing said.

Laing said the fire stopped from progressing around 3 p.m. About 100 firefighters fought against it.

A power pole lay flat over the Camino Diablo, which he had used to pull electrical cables down. A Lafayette police officer said the mast fell off when it arrived shortly after the fire started, and the flames spread south from there onto Highway 24. Embers leaping across the highway started another small fire that was quickly extinguished.

The area was not affected by the Pacific Gas and Electric Co. power outages, the official said.

About 15 meters from the collapsed distribution line, the clubhouse of the Lafayette Tennis Club was destroyed. At around 3:45 p.m., firefighters cleared the charred remains, leaving only a few walls. The surrounding tennis courts remained intact.

The wind continued to blow through the neighborhood, but by late afternoon the fire had calmed down. The Contra Costa fire department said several units would provide overnight shelter from the wind that picks up embers.

Chronicle contributor Joaquin Palomino contributed to this report.

Rachel Swan and Matthias Gafni are contributors to the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com, matthias.gafni@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan, @mgafni