Mysterious Google-linked mansion in wealthy Palo Alto neighbourhood razed to ground by blaze
Fire that gutted $11m (£7.9m) mansion broke out at rear of property, says fire official
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A three-alarm fire blazed through and completely gutted a mansion – believed to be owned either by Google co-founder Larry Page or the company itself – in California’s Palo Alto city this week.
Firefighters responded on Tuesday night at around 8pm and subsequently managed to put out the flame. No one was reported injured and the house was empty when the incident occurred, according to a report by local news website Palo Alto Online.
The fire was spotted on a security camera by a neighbour, who alerted fire officials, according to the city’s fire department.
Smoke had emerged from the second floor of the two-storey home, city fire official Shane Yarbrough, a city fire official, was quoted as saying.
The fire was triggered at the rear of the home, which has a long driveway, an attached unit at the back and a basement, according to Mr Yarbrough. The cause of the fire, however, has not yet been ascertained.
“Crews arrived to find heavy fire on three sides of the structure and on both stories,” a Facebook post from Palo Alto’s fire department said. “Additionally, flames from the fire threatened tall trees on one side of the structure.”
The property, situated at the neighbourhood’s Bryant Street, is a six-bedroom house estimated to be worth $11m (£7.9m).
It is either owned by Mr Page or Google itself, according to Palo Alto Online, who quoted a neighbour who requested anonymity.
The property could have possibly been used as an office during the day for a small team of workers, who parked their vehicles outside and left by evening, according to the neighbour.
Public records of the property reportedly showed it was owned by a Limited Liability Company (LLC) which shares the same address as Mr Page’s Carl Victor Page Memorial Foundation.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments