Oct. 04--Firefighters in Oxnard battled a three-alarm fire Friday afternoon that either heavily damaged or destroyed nine buildings in the 1200 block of Oxnard Boulevard, according to the city's fire chief.
The fire was declared under control at 5 p.m.
The fire was reported at 3:42 p.m. Friday, authorities said. When crews arrived at about 3:45, multiple buildings were already burning and there was heavy wind and smoke, Fire Chief James Williams said.
The fire primarily struck a mobile home park, but a two-story permanent structure at the site that appeared to be an apartment building was gutted and had no roof left.
The blaze spread quickly, and Williams said strong Santa Ana winds certainly were a contributing factor to that.
Jesus Carrizal Jr., 39, lives in a second-floor unit of an apartment building that was burning. He said that when he was asked to leave around 5 p.m., his apartment was the only one in the building that was not on fire. At 5:20, he was anxious and waiting to find out whether his unit burned.
An employee at the MTW#2 tire store just north of the mobile home park said he became aware of the fire when he heard an explosion, ran outside and saw a building on fire. There was a vehicle next to the building, and it caught fire, then the vehicle fire spread to other buildings, he said.
He said a mechanic from a nearby garage ran to one of the mobile homes and rescued two children. He called the mechanic a hero.
P.J. Riley, the owner of Ventura County Motosports just north of the site of the fire, said he and employee George Muniz were among the first people on the scene. He said he was driving up to the area and thought it was a barbecue fire at first. When he got closer, he saw a minivan on fire. He said the front tires of the vehicle exploded in the fire.
From there, the fire spread quickly to a tree and then to a building, he said.
He said he twice dialed 911 on his cellphone and could not get through.
Riley, who is on crutches as a result of a traffic accident, said he and Muniz ran into his shop and grabbed some fire extinguishers to help deal with the blaze.
At one point, he said, someone went knocking on the doors of mobile homes to warn people to get out.
Around 6 p.m., Riley was being interviewed by a fire investigator and a police officer at the scene.
The area is a commercial/industrial area with businesses that include an upholstery shop and auto garages. There is an empty lot across Oxnard Boulevard from the site of the fire. Police had blocked Oxnard Boulevard in the area and a crowd of about 20 people had congregated to watch the action from behind yellow safety tape that had been strung up.
One firefighter suffered smoke inhalation, Williams said, but no other injuries were reported.
Williams said crews were unsure how the fire started.
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