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RIVERSIDE – A Paul Mitchell Hair Products lab in a residential garage was determined to be the cause of a fire in the City of Riverside on Wednesday morning.

At around 9:57 a.m. the City of Riverside Fire Department responded to a garage fire in the 6800 block of Palos Drive. When firefighters arrived they located a single-story home with black smoke coming from the garage area of the home. While attacking the fire, firefighters located what appeared to be a lab containing numerous chemicals. The fire was quickly contained to the garage and was extinguished leaving minimal damage to the garage of the home.

The incident was deemed a Hazmat incident and the Hazardous Materials Team were called to the location and a perimeter was set up to contain any potentially harmful chemicals. Four nearby homes were evacuated, while six other homes were sheltered in place. Also responding to the location was Code Enforcement, Fire Prevention, Building and Safety, and Riverside County Environmental Health. Water runoff sampling and air sampling determined that the area was safe. The garage was also deemed safe by the Hazardous Material Team and by the Riverside County Environmental Health, and all evacuation orders were lifted.

The resident of the home was not home at the time of the fire. Firefighters learned that the resident was operating a lab from Paul Mitchell Hair Products. Paul Mitchell Hair Products will handle the disposal of the damaged chemicals. The resident was issued a citation, ordering to cease the lab operations at the residential home. The cause of the fire was accidental and firefighters were able to save approximately $400,000 with a loss of approximately $15,000 in contents only.