First responders rushed to a burning home in Cypress Thursday morning where a condo somehow caught fire and began blazing quickly, eyewitnesses say.
Firefighters responded to the 5700 block of Playa Way at 9:18 this morning for a fire in an apartment complex with reports of people trapped, a spokesperson for the Orange County Fire Authority said. Crews found one unit that was involved with fire and threatening adjacent units and an injured woman on their arrival, they said.
The injured woman was rescued by two women prior to firefighters arriving. The two seeing the front door area well-involved in fire quickly broke out a window, freeing the woman yelling for help. Unfortunately, a second person inside the home was found deceased.
Neighbors say a cleaning crew used the back end of brooms to break windows to save the woman they heard screaming in the burning condo.
Firefighter paramedics provided treatment for the woman and transported her to a hospital in unknown condition. It took firefighters about 30 minutes to get a knockdown on the blaze. Crews were able to prevent the fire from spreading to the adjacent units.
According to the OCFA public information officer Capt. Sean Doran, the fire was already well underway by the time crews arrived, with one unit in the complex fully engulfed.
Further, the OCFA has stated that fire investigators are working closely with the Cypress Police Department to peel back the layers of this devastating incident and uncover the root cause, which remains a mystery at present. The community was a bit rattled, grappling with the hard reality of the loss of life in their complex.
Authorities have thesituation under investigation and neither the name of the woman rescued or the man who died in the fire have been released to the public. OCFA says the investigation continues in an effort to understand how the fire started and to prevent future tragedies.
OCFA fire investigators were on scene and are still working with the Cypress Police Department as the investigation continues. An investigation determined the fire was accidental. Damage to the structure is estimated at $350,000 and $150,000 to contents