The cause of a deadly Fresno house fire could be ‘smoking material’
By Cresencio Rodriguez-Delgado
cdelgado@fresnobee.com
A fire in a north Fresno home that claimed the life of one person was likely started by a cigarette or other lit tobacco product, investigators said.
Fresno Fire Department spokesman Hector Vasquez said a fire investigator had narrowed the cause of the fire to “some type of smoking material” like a cigarette.
The person killed, believed to be a man in his 60s, has not been identified.
The fire started in a bedroom toward the back of the home on West Brier Circle Court. Firefighters were dispatched just after 3 a.m. Sunday When engines arrived, firefighters couldn’t immediately enter the home due to the flames. After the fire was extinguished, a dead man was found in a back room where the blaze started.
According to City-Data.com, Richard Logan, 84, and Alice Logan, 62, own the home.
Vasquez said Sunday that Alice Logan had tried to rescue her brother after she was alerted by smoke alarms that the fire had started. In the process, she suffered smoke inhalation and was taken to a nearby hospital.
Community Medical Centers spokeswoman Mary Lisa Russell confirmed Monday that Alice Logan was treated and released from the hospital. Richard Logan was not injured in the fire, according to Vasquez.
Other homes nearby were not damaged, but Vasquez said the Logans’ house was uninhabitable because of the fire. On Sunday, workers were boarding it up. Total damage was estimated at about $100,000.
========================
1 dead in northwest Fresno house fire
By Jessica Johnson
jjohnson@fresnobee.com
A man in his 60s died in a northwest Fresno house fire early Sunday.
The fire, one of three that kept firefighters busy overnight, was reported about 3:15 a.m. at 202 W. Brier Circle, just west of Woodward Park, according to Fresno Fire Department spokesman Hector Vasquez.
The first of five engines arrived to the scene within four minutes and confirmed there was a man trapped in a bedroom near the back of the house where the fire started. Rescuers need about 15 minutes to contain the fire before safely entering the bedroom, where they found the man dead. Vasquez said the cause of his death remains unknown.
Working smoke alarms were present in the house and are credited in notifying the victim’s sister who is in her mid 50s. Vasquez said she tried to rescue her brother and in the process, suffered smoke inhalation. She was taken to a nearby hospital.
No nearby structures were involved, but Vasquez said the house is uninhabitable because of the fire. On Sunday, workers were boarding it up. Fire investigators estimated the total damage at about $100,000.
The other two fires were reported near Belmont and Trinity avenues northwest of Kerman about 6 a.m. Sunday and at 2838 E. Simpson Ave. in central Fresno about 10 p.m. Saturday. No other details were available on the Kerman-area fire; the Simpson fire involved a vacant home.