HEMET: Seven displaced by multi-structure blaze, 3 dogs rescued from fire
The blaze destroyed several residential structures. Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents photo
HEMET – At least one person sustained minor injuries when a fire broke out at a multi-family, apartment complex Saturday, Dec. 17. The blaze was reported in the 1200 block of Olive Tree Lane between Los Tilos Road and San Jacinto Street in Hemet.
Firefighters from three engine companies, a medic squad, and a battalion commander were initially called to the scene of the fire at 12:23 a.m.
The first engine company, medic squad, and battalion chief arrived within one minute of the initially dispatched call. Other engine companies and medical personnel continued flooding into the area over the next several minutes.
At 12:30 a.m., the on-scene battalion chief reported a working structure fire, with at least one structure fully engulfed in flames. He also reported that the blaze was threatening a second structure.
Numerous engine companies responded to the blaze. John Strangis photo
In addition to all the fire resources converging on the area, the battalion chief requested three additional county fire units to respond to the growing blaze.
The battalion chief requested emergency response from all available Hemet police officers to assist with residential evacuations at the scene of the blaze. He also requested emergency response from additional AMR ground ambulances to stage at the scene in case the fire resulted in multiple victims.
By 12:32 a.m., firefighters began their initial attack on the growing blaze, as additional engines and fire resources continued arriving to assist in battling the fire.
Despite numerous engine companies battling the blaze, at 12:39 a.m., the battalion chief updated that a second structure had caught fire.
Firefighters quickly knocked down the blaze. John Strangis photo
While firefighters battled the blaze, Hemet police officers reported locating a pregnant female who was suffering from smoke inhalation and needed immediate medical evaluation and treatment.
She was treated at the scene by firefighter/paramedics and AMR medics. It was not immediately known if the pregnant victim was transported to a hospital for further treatment.
Just seventeen minutes after they began their initial attack on the blaze, the battalion chief reported that the fires had been knocked down at 12:49 a.m., and the blaze was controlled. He requested Southern California Gas Company and Southern California Edison personnel to respond to the location to shut off all utilities to the residences damaged by the fire. He also requested building inspectors to the scene.
Additionally, the American Red Cross was summoned to the scene to assist with seven people, including five adults and two children, and several dogs that had been saved from the fire but were displaced.
Hank Jobe described the tearful reunion when he brought the fire victim one of her missing dogs. John Strangis photo
Hank Jobe, a resident at the scene of the fire, explained the blaze started in a kitchen on an electric cooking stove.
Jobe explained that two residents where the fire began were reportedly cooking hamburger patties when grease from the stove caught fire. While the residents were trying to extinguish the blaze, the grease fire quickly spread to a nearby electrical outlet and breaker box.
Jobe said three dogs had been trapped in the fire. Two of the dogs were rescued by residents, however the third dog, a pit bull, was trapped inside the burning home and initially feared killed by the fire. However, at some point in all the chaos, the pit bull managed to escape the blaze and ran into a nearby cul-de-sac, where Jobe found it.
A couple is reunited with their three dogs while the fire rages nearby. John Strangis photo
Jobe sought out the owners of the pit bull and described the tearful reunion between the dog owners and their missing pet, saying, “They were in tears and crying out of happiness, that they were able to get their baby back.”
Jobe said one of the dogs was slightly burned on its backside, but paramedics had checked out the dog and determined it was fine.
Jobe also reported that one of the victims of the blaze had just buried her mother and all the mothers belongings and memories were believed to have been destroyed by the fire.
Fire resources were expected to remain at the scene for several hours conducting mop up and extensive overhaul operations.
As of 3:30 a.m., fire resources were still at the scene of the blaze.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents video
Robert Carter Public/Safety Incidents video
John Strangis/strangisjohn.com video
This is a developing story. Additional information will be updated as it becomes available.
Contact the writer: [email protected]
Trevor Montgomery spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including the Robert Presley Detention Center, the Southwest Station in Temecula, the Hemet Station, and the Lake Elsinore Station, along with many other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, Personnel and Background Investigations and he finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.
Hank jobe is not a resident and it did not start because of hamburger patties and the breaker box is in the bathroom not the kitchen I don’t know where he got this info but it’s false . The fire started in my apartment due to the stove having some sort of malfunction .