A fire destroyed a duplex home in the U.S. Embassy Housing Area at U.S. Army Garrison-Yongsan on Wednesday afternoon. Nobody was in the home, Quarters 4954, during the fire and no injuries were reported.

At least 50 firefighters in seven emergency vehicles from the garrison, K-16 Air Base and the Yongsan District Fire Department battled the fire for 15 to 20 minutes.

"Because of the intensity, I didn’t know whether we would be able to save the other side of the duplex, but we did," Yongsan Fire Chief Alex Temporado said.

The U.S. Embassy maintains its own housing compound near the Yongsan Commissary. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Former janitor fined, fired for school incidentOKINAWA CITY, Okinawa — A former janitor at Lester Middle School was fined $2,500 on Wednesday for causing a public nuisance, a misdemeanor he admitted to in an earlier hearing.

Reynaldo Saurin Silva, 42, pleaded guilty in Japanese court, admitting that he made a 12-year-old student uncomfortable in a school restroom in February.

Department of Defense Dependents Schools officials reported the incident to authorities after the student claimed Silva touched his groin during a recess Feb. 12.

Silva denied molesting the boy, telling the court last week that he attempted to exchange a "low five" with the student.

Following the incident, he was fired from his job with a Japanese company that provides custodial services to the school.

Silva had been detained since his arrest in August after the U.S. military turned the case over to Okinawa police because he is not covered by the U.S.-Japan Status of Forces Agreement.