CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Police and fire officials are investigating a fire that began late Thursday night and destroyed several structures.

Sgt. Dominic Ramirez of the Clearlake Police Department said authorities believe that the fire in the 14500 block of Emory Avenue was the result of criminal activity.

As a result, Ramirez said the police department and Lake County Fire have launched a joint investigation.

The fire was first reported at 11:50 p.m. Thursday just after a large explosion that residents throughout the city of Clearlake reported hearing, as Lake County News has reported.

Ramirez said both police and firefighters responded to the scene, where they found several structures already engulfed in flames.

Reports from the scene stated that the fire was contained within about an hour.

Lake County Fire Chief Willie Sapeta told Lake County News early Friday that the fire destroyed a studio apartment, a single family dwelling and three outbuildings.

Ramirez said that there were vehicles that sustained major damage as a result of the fire, as did neighboring buildings, some of which had shattered windows due to the explosion.

The fire damaged power lines in the area, with incident command requesting Pacific Gas and Electric respond and cut power to nearby homes.

In all, PG&E reported that more than 400 customers were impacted.

Ramirez said no injuries have been reported thus far, and all residents of the homes the fire destroyed were reported to have evacuated their homes safely.

As part of the ongoing investigation, anyone with information regarding the fire is asked to call Officer Leonardo Flores at the Clearlake Police Department at 707-994-8201, Extension 542.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.