70-year-old surfboard maker's livelihood lost in massive fire started by electric bike charger

An electric bike charger overheated and caused a massive garage fire in Ocean Beach Tuesday evening (August 6), according to fire officials.

The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department said fire erupted at around 5 p.m. in a detached garage next to a home on Froude Street, near Brighton Avenue, according to local media.

The blaze destroyed the garage and damaged a fence line and a neighbor’s garage, but fire officials said no injuries were reported.

Homeowner Alvin Elliot said he used to make and repair surfboards for decades. In recent years, Elliot's surfboard work became a hobby, and he kept prized boards in the garage. Nearly two dozen boards were lost in the fire, along with equipment and templates, according to local media.

The garage also housed some chemicals used in making and shaping boards. Some of those chemicals exploded and burned up in the fire, prompting a hazmat crew responsex, according to local media.

Firefighters said they did not find any environmental dangers after a close inspection, according to local media.

"For me, the loss is a life's work as far as making surfboards," the 70-year-old Elliot said to local media. "All the reasons I get up in the morning are gone. At my age, I'm an old beach guy, that's all I had left."