Redlands woman killed in early morning house fire
A 48-year-old Redlands woman died in a house fire this morning and fire officials say packrat conditions may have contributed to the blaze.
Neighbors in the 900 block of Pennsylvania Avenue called 9-1-1 about 4:30 a.m. this morning after smelling smoke and spotting the three-bedroom home on fire.
Police arrived first but could not enter the house because the front door was locked. Officers broke out a window to try and ventilate the house while calling out for residents inside.
When firefighters arrived, they found the unidentified woman lying inside the home in the front doorway. She was taken to Redlands Community Hospital, where she was pronounced dead about 5 a.m.
Crews searched for a man in his 70s who is believed to live there but discovered later that he had been taken to the hospital yesterday on an unrelated matter. One firefighter received a minor injury while making entry to the house.
It took 19 firefighters a half hour to knock down the flames. There was an estimated $200,000 in damage.
Firefighters said the blaze started in one of two back bedrooms, which was piled waist high with books, magazines and debris. They also found that batteries had been removed from two smoke detectors, said city spokesman Carl Baker.
Coroner's officials will release the victim's identity after notifying her family.
stacia.glenn@inlandnewspapers.com
Neighbors in the 900 block of Pennsylvania Avenue called 9-1-1 about 4:30 a.m. this morning after smelling smoke and spotting the three-bedroom home on fire.
Police arrived first but could not enter the house because the front door was locked. Officers broke out a window to try and ventilate the house while calling out for residents inside.
When firefighters arrived, they found the unidentified woman lying inside the home in the front doorway. She was taken to Redlands Community Hospital, where she was pronounced dead about 5 a.m.
Crews searched for a man in his 70s who is believed to live there but discovered later that he had been taken to the hospital yesterday on an unrelated matter. One firefighter received a minor injury while making entry to the house.
It took 19 firefighters a half hour to knock down the flames. There was an estimated $200,000 in damage.
Firefighters said the blaze started in one of two back bedrooms, which was piled waist high with books, magazines and debris. They also found that batteries had been removed from two smoke detectors, said city spokesman Carl Baker.
Coroner's officials will release the victim's identity after notifying her family.
stacia.glenn@inlandnewspapers.com
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