Apartment Fire Caused By Wall Heater In Orange County

ORANGE COUNTY, CA — A Santa Ana apartment filled with smoke and fire on Saturday when towels caught fire in a bathroom, according to firefighters.

Approximately 30 OCFA firefighters had knockdown of an apartment fire within 15 minutes Saturday at 3:35 p.m. after bath towels hanging over an electric bathroom wall heater caught fire in a four-unit complex in the 1400 block of S. Sycamore Street in Santa Ana, according to authorities.

No injuries occurred and everyone evacuated safely; however, the fire caused $5K in structural damages and $300 in content loss.

“The family of five, including three children, ages five, seven and 13, did not use this wall heater much and it appears the heater was somehow accidentally turned on,” said OCFA Captain PIO Steve Concialdi. “The American Red Cross was on-scene quickly and were able to provide housing for the displaced family.”

“As we head into the cooler months of November through February, OCFA wants to remind the public to always keep combustibles ‘3-feet from the heat,’” said Concialdi. “Anytime you keep combustibles – such as bath or dish towels, curtains or furniture too close to a source of heat – whether it is a candle, an electric space or wall heater, a fireplace or stove, even baseboards – you run the risk of those items accidentally overheating and causing a fire.”

“OCFA also reminds everyone that specific to space heaters, please do not keep these close to bedroom quarters,” said Concialdi. “Bedroom fires have started when someone sleeping becomes overheated by a blanket, throws the blanket off of the bed, and this “combustible” lands on a space heater and starts a fire.”

“OCFA wants everyone to head into this holiday season safely – and warmly, but remember to keep combustibles 3 feet from the heat,” said Concialdi.

The family was back in their Santa Ana apartment Sunday evening despite the indoor ground-floor apartment air still smelling a distinct odor of burnt smoke. They said when the fire broke out Saturday afternoon they were home watching television.

The family reportedly have a working smoke alarm; however, said they smelled the smoke first and immediately exited the apartment.

While the fire was very scary for the family, they thanked the firefighters who “were very kind to everyone in the building.”

The limited damage to the Santa Ana apartment is credit to the quick response of OCFA firefighter paramedics. The apartment complex on the corner of S. Sycamore is closely connected to several other housing units on that street – most decorated with items for Halloween Tuesday night.

OCFA offers a Home Safety Checklist for the public at www.ocfa.org. This checklist includes:

- Cooking Safety: "Keep an eye on what you fry." Stay in the kitchen when frying,
grilling or using an open flame;

- Smoking Safety: Never smoke in bed;

- Children Playing: Matches and lighters are locked away;

- Fireplaces, Space Heaters, Baseboards, etc: "3 feet from the heat." Furniture, curtains, dish towers and anything that could catch fire are at least 3 feet from any type of heat
source;

- Electrical and Appliance Safety: Large and small appliances are plugged directly into wall outlets;

- Smoke Alarms: Change smoke alarm batteries every year unless it has a long-life battery, Replace smoke alarms every ten years, Test your smoke alarms each month. If they're not working, they can't get you out the door;

- Home Fire Escape Plan: At least twice a year, practice your fire escape plan with all family members, learn how to use a fire extinguisher;

- What's Your Escape Time?: Make sure everyone can escape in two minutes or less.

For all the latest, follow OCFA on Twitter @OCFA_PIO.

Amy Spurgeon Hoffman photo