Fire destroys home on Rotanzi Street

Firefighters responded to a house fire at 200 Rotanzi St. shortly after 8 tonight, and the home is a total loss, CalFire Battalion Chief Saul Villagomez said at the scene.

The woman living in the home escaped uninjured and the American Red Cross arrived about 10:25 p.m. to assist her.

CalFire firefighters from Ramona’s Station 80 were the first on the scene and found the house fully engulfed, said Villagomez, adding that the crew spoke with the woman and learned no one else was in the house. They initially took an offensive attack and went inside the home to try and extinguish the blaze, but within minutes had to go on the defensive and fight the fire from the outside, Villagomez said. They also worked successfully to contain the fire to the structure alone.

The cause of the fire is unknown. A CalFire investigator arrived about 10 p.m. to attempt to determine how the fire started, Villagomez said. Firefighters will remain on scene cleaning up and separating burned items from unburned items to save as much of the woman’s possessions as possible, Villagomez said, estimating they will be at the site for at least two more hours.

The woman, a widow, has lived in the home a long time, possibly since the 1970s, Villagomez said. A value on the loss has not yet been set. Villagomez said the woman had a lot of contents in the house, some dating back to the 1800s.

Engines from Ramona’s three fire stations responded to the fire. Intermountain Fire & Rescue Department also responded, and sheriff’s and California Highway Patrol officers are on scene.