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Smoke Detector Helps Save a Life at House Fire on Vista Street
By frhayes | June 30, 2008
On Monday, June 30, 2008, at 6:31 A.M. Long Beach Fire Department (LBFD) units responded to the report of a structure fire in the 2800 block of Vista Street. The first on scene unit, Engine four within four minutes, gave an initial size up of a single story, single family residence with heavy black smoke showing from the front of the structure, pulling a “hot line” for fire attack.
The second arriving Engine Company supplied water and assisted with the extinguishment and search of the residence. The Truck Company preformed vertical ventilation on the roof to assist with search activities, and firefighting operations, and specifically assisted with checking for fire in the attic area.
The Rescue Unit was initially dedicated to treat any possible occupants at the time of the fire and additional units assisted were needed in the operations. A quick “knock down” of the fire with a coordinated search of the occupancy was achieved within seven minutes of the time of arrival of the first on scene unit.
There was one resident at home at the time of the fire, a 78 year old woman, she stated that ” the smoke detector in my hall way was what alerted me to the fire, I made my way into the kitchen and saw flames coming from the water heater closet, it was amazing how fast the fire spread, the smoke was so dark, I was barely able to get out of the house before the smoke became to thick to breath”.
The daughter of the resident while visiting her mother approximately six months ago recounted how she had noticed that there were no functioning smoke detectors in the house. She purchased one and placed it in the hallway to help protect her mother in the event of a fire, this wise decision obviously contributed to help saving a life. The Red Cross was contacted to assist the displaced resident, however she declined their services, indicating that her daughters would assist her.
An Arson investigator from the LBFD concluded that the probable start of the fire was in the water heater closet, he was unable to conclude if the water heater had started the fire, and categorized the fire as an “undetermined” cause at this time. Two rooms were severely damaged in the fire, the kitchen, and a living room area, with additional smoke damage through most of the structure.
Units that responded were: BC2, E10, E2, E4, T14, R2, Arson 4, and PIO1 with a total of 30 personnel.
This incident occurred in the 2nd Council District.
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