Crime & Safety

Update: Good Samaritans Help Elderly Couple Escape House Fire

The fire may have been caused by an electrical heating device, fire officials said.

An elderly couple escaped a one-alarm house fire Thursday morning, thanks to the help of good Samaritans, an Alameda County Fire Department spokeswoman said.

The three-bedroom Wendy Court home was completely destroyed in the fire, spokeswoman Aisha Knowles said. Investigators believe it was sparked by an electrical heating device, like an electric blanket or heating pad.

Just before 10 a.m., an 86-year-old man who lived at 115 Wendy Court was in the living room when he stood up and smelled smoke, Knowles said.

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The man, a World War II veteran, quickly found his wife, 77, who also lived at the home that they purchased brand new in 1961, and the two exited the burning home through the living room, fleeing into the backyard.Β 

Two good Samaritans noticed smoke rising from the home, ran to the home and yelled to see if anyone was inside but heard no response, Knowles said.

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They kept yelling until they heard the elderly man in the yard, and the passersby were able to open a side gate that permitted the couple to get farther away from the home, which at that point Knowles said had flames shooting from all sides.

Although the couple was able to escape, the couple's two cats are unaccounted for, Knowles said.

The good Samaritans had called 911 at 10:02 a.m., when they first saw the smoke, and Knowles said that the fire was upgraded to a second-alarm response as a precaution after arriving units encountered heavy smoke and flames.

Firefighters contained the blaze within 20 minutes but could not salvage the structure.

"The fire completely destroyed the home with the exception of their garage, which sustained moderate smoke damage," Knowles said.

A neighboring home sustained a broken window and damage to its roof because of its exposure to the fire.

Investigators determined that the fire started in the home's rear bedroom where the couple slept, and Knowles said investigators believe the fire was related to an electrical heating device, such as an electric blanket or heating pad.

β€” Bay City NewsΒ 


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