Couple Spared, Cats Perish In Garden Grove Fire

GARDEN GROVE, CA — A second-story apartment caught fire early Thursday morning, leading two people to jump for their lives from the flames, officials said. Many pets perished in the blaze, officials said.

The fire broke out at the 13300 block of El Prado Avenue apartment building, leaving a half-dozen pets dead, and causing more than $600,000 in damage and displacing 12 residents.

Crews responded about 3 a.m. and found at least two units ablaze in the two-story structure, according to Capt. Thanh Nguyen of the Garden Grove Fire Department.

It took 55 firefighters about a half-hour to extinguish the flames.

By the time firefighters arrived, a man had jumped from the second-story apartment window and his wife was hanging from the ledge, Nguyen said. The wife jumped to her safety before crews could get to her.

Both initially declined medical care, but after a second assessment, it was determined they had sustained some smoke inhalation and were taken to a hospital as a precaution, Nguyen said.

The couple lives on the first floor, but the flames and smoke chased them upstairs, Nguyen said.

A working smoke alarm roused them from sleep, saving their lives, he said.

A preliminary investigation determined the fire may have started in a ground floor apartment and spread upward, Nguyen said. It appears to be accidental, and investigators are "unable to rule out smoking material" as a cause, he said.

Residents tried to warn their neighbors as they ran from their apartments.

"We heard somebody scream that there was a fire," resident Sandra Alvarez told ABC7. "As soon as we heard that, my husband started screaming and yelling `there's a fire,' and we just screamed really loud to wake up the whole building."

Six of the couple's cats were killed in the blaze and two others were rescued and treated by firefighters, Nguyen said.

Four units in the apartment building were damaged, displacing a dozen residents, he said. The American Red Cross was called in to provide assistance.

The estimated damage to the building, which was red-tagged, was $600,000 and $60,000 to its contents, Nguyen said.

Garden Grove Fire Department Photo