Friday afternoon, September 5, in San Jose wasn’t just another late summer day. At 3:22 p.m., a large plume of smoke began curling above the Rose Glen neighborhood. Moments later, the reality was clear — a major San Jose apartment fire had broken out, and it would change the course of the day for more than a dozen residents. This wasn’t a small incident. By the time firefighters arrived, flames had already claimed multiple units inside a two-story garden-style apartment complex on the 800 block of Deland Avenue. It would take a swift, coordinated effort to keep the blaze from spreading further — and even then, the damage was extensive. What Happened — A Clear Timeline The call came in at exactly 3:22 p.m. Crews from the San Jose Fire Department (SJFD) were dispatched immediately. The urgency of the situation quickly escalated, leading to a third-alarm response — a sign