SANTEE FIRE DISPLACES RESIDENTS, ONE SUFFERS SMOKE INHALATION

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By Miriam Raftery

Photos by Scott Lagace

December 20, 2021 (Santee) – A fire in an upstairs apartment in Santee on Sunday morning displaced eight residents. 

A resident who tried to douse the fire, which started in a bedroom, suffered smoke inhalation and was transported to the U.C. San Diego Regional Burn Center, Times of San Diego reports.

Santee Fire Department battled the blaze and prevented it from spreading to other units in the complex at the corner of Magnolia Avenue and Princess Joan. Firefighters from San Miguel, Heartland and Lakeside fire departments also responded.

Photographer Scott Lagace and his wife, Jennifer, were coming home from a walk around Santee Lakes when they spotted smoke near their own home.  “So we raced over to make sure it wasn’t our house,” says Lagace, who snapped these images.

Firefighting crews contained the blaze to the unit where the fire started, though the unit below sustained water damage and a unit next door  had smoke damage. Investigators are working to determine the cause of the blaze.

The Red Cross is assisting the eight displaced residents, along with their pets.


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