UPDATE: Cal Fire releases body cam footage after destructive SJ house fire
UPDATED: Monday, Oct. 22, 3:45 p.m., With Cal Fire body cam footage (See below.)
SAN JACINTO — A family was displaced by a residential fire that broke out at a San Jacinto home earlier this morning, Wednesday, Oct. 17. No injuries were reported after the fire that left the home, located on the 500 block of Rosario Ave., between Main and E. 7th streets, temporarily uninhabitable.
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Firefighters were dispatched to the scene of the fire shortly after 8 a.m., after multiple area residents began reporting smoke billowing from the home. About two dozen firefighters from Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire, Hemet Fire, and Soboba Fire, were dispatched to the fire due to the potential for flames to spread to other nearby homes. Six engine companies, one Medic Squad, and one Breathing Support Unit, ultimately responding to the scene.
Firefighters from at least three area agencies came together this morning to battle a single-story residential structure fire in San Jacinto. Soboba Fire Chief Randy A. Sandoval photo
When officials arrived they found thick smoke pouring from a single-story residence and firefighters began an aggressive attack on the blaze.
Firefighters on the ground were soon seen putting water onto the fire, while other firefighters made access to the home’s roof and began cutting ventilation holes to disperse smoke from inside the residence. Cal Fire later released body cam footage taken by a firefighter as he ventilated the home’s roof.
While firefighters battled the blaze, SoCal Edison and Southern California Gas Company were requested to the scene to shut off utilities to the residence.
Area residents later commended firefighter’s efforts, thanking the multiple agencies for their quick handling and intra-agency cooperation that led to the fire’s quick knock down.
“It was really great to see these dedicated and hardworking firefighters working together,” San Jacinto resident Sean McNab later told RCNS. “Even though we had multiple agencies respond, they all really seemed coordinated and like they had things well under control. I think they all did a great job!”
It was not immediately known if anyone was inside the home when the fire broke out, but Cal Fire later updated that American Red Cross had been requested to assist the residents displaced by the fire.
Officials are still working to determine the cause of this morning’s fire.
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Cal Fire Local 2881 video
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Trevor Montgomery, 47, recently moved to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle, and Anza Valley Outlook; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.
Trevor 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, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with 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, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 28 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 14 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.
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