Oceanside CA— Just before 2:00pm, on July 23, 2020, fire units from Oceanside, Carlsbad and Vista responded to multiple reports of a structure fire in an apartment complex located 3568 Paseo De Los Californianos. At 2:02pm, E214 confirmed a working structure fire on the first floor of a three-story apartment building. Following an initial report on conditions and upgrading the response to a second alarm, E214 pulled attack lines for primary search and fire control and established California IC.

Fire operations were conducted collaboratively with participation from neighboring agencies. Initial knockdown of the fire was declared in the next twenty-five minutes and the fire was considered contained/controlled at 2:35pm. Unfortunately, subsequent hotspots were found in void spaces of the building’s construction. Construction features of the building, which was built in 1989, proved problematic for firefighting efforts and caused an extended operation for the next few hours. Six of ten units had varying degrees of damage in the building as a result of the fire.
There was no fire extension to surrounding buildings in the complex.
One resident, suffering smoke inhalation, refused care from Rescue Ambulance personnel. Resuscitation efforts were administered (see picture) for a pet cat. As of last reports, the cat is recovering well. There were no injuries to fire personnel on this incident.
The cause and origin of the fire are currently under investigation by Oceanside Fire Department Duty Investigators. Red Cross has been contacted for assistance with placing displaced residents into temporary accommodations.