One person was killed after flames ripped through a San Jacinto residence on the 600 block of E. Main St. Tuesday evening, July 23. Reports from the scene indicate the deadly blaze might have started in the kitchen, near the home’s stove.
Although a teenager reportedly entered the burning home and tried to save the victim, after kicking open a back door and trying to enter the residence the teen was pushed back by the flames and intense heat from the blaze.
About two dozen Cal Fire/Riverside County and Soboba firefighters from four engine companies, along with AMR and sheriff’s deputies, responded to the blaze around 7:45 p.m., after receiving reports of a residential structure fire, Riverside County Fire Department spokesman Rob Roseen explained in an incident report. They were assisted by a Breathing Support Unit and Paramedic Squad.
As officials were responding to the scene, they reported heavy smoke and flames billowing from the residence, with area residents trying to put out the flames.
“The first arriving engine reported a single family mobile home with working fire,” explained Roseen.
Firefighters immediately began an aggressive attack on the fire, and managed to quickly knock down the blaze. “However, one confirmed fatality was discovered during the primary search,” said Roseen. No other homes were damaged, due to firefighters’ efforts.
Although witnesses later said the victim was a 78-year-old woman, the person’s name has not been released, pending identification and notification of the victim’s family.
Witnesses at the scene later reported that a person, possibly a teenage juvenile who resides near the home, attempted to save the victim. According to witnesses, the minor accessed the residence through its back yard and kicked open a back door to the home; however, upon entering the residence the would-be, teenage rescuer was pushed back by the intense heat caused by the blaze.
Although the home was left heavily damaged and uninhabitable by the fire, there were no reported injuries to other citizens or firefighters, according to Roseen.
An arson investigator later responded to the scene to investigate the cause of the deadly blaze, which is still under investigation.
