Her neighbor's pool house was on fire.

Gifford called 911 and then tried to hose down the fire from her backyard. A contractor working nearby also rushed to help.

"One of the neighbors warned me. So I rushed out of the door with my child in my arms," said another nearby resident. She said some of the residents were scared and had come out onto the street.

A huge plume of smoke was visible from a distance.

Four fire engines, two from the Saratoga Fire Department and two from the Santa Clara County Fire Department, responded to the fire at the corner of Sevilla Lane and Mandarin Way.

"An hour and a half later, the blaze was put out," said Ron Vega, assistant fire chief of the Saratoga Fire Department. The cause of the fire was still being investigated, but the fire department suspects a mechanical failure of the pool pump was to blame for the incident.

"The deck, pool pump house, fence and a low hanging tree caught fire," said Vega. "But the first engine was able to knock down the fire."

No other homes in the area were affected and there were very few flying embers.

Some sheriff's deputies also arrived on the scene to help put out the fire with garden hoses. Dan Cutforth, a sheriff's deputy, suffered some minor smoke inhalation and was treated at Valley Medical Center. He was released from hospital the same day and has returned to work since.

No other injuries were reported.