Smoking in Bed Kills Calif. Man

ARVIN, Calif. --

An elderly man is dead after he was unable to exit a burning home in Arvin.

Sean Collins with the Kern County Fire Department said that the fire started in the bedroom. Collins said that preliminary reports show that the man was smoking in his bed and some how lit the bed on fire with the ashes.

Around 6:10 p.m. on Monday, a call was received by the Kern County Fire Department for a house fire in the 800 block of Hutson Avenue in Arvin.

Neighbors reported to firefighters that an elderly person may have been inside the house.

Arturo Olivares, 85, was later found deceased in a front bedroom. Approximately 16 Kern County firefighters responded to the incident.

When crews arrived, they said they were faced with a single-family home with smoke coming from the roof.

Firefighters made entry to the structure from the rear of the property due to security bars at the front of the building.

Firefighters were able to quickly knock down the fire and search the premises.

Olivares was located in a front bedroom and removed to the open air, fire crews said.

An ambulance crew on scene was able to determine that Olivares was dead.

No other persons were involved.

There were no other reported injuries.

Kern County Fire Department would like to remind residents that a working smoke detector can give an early warning in the event of a fire. Unfortunately this home did not have a smoke detector.

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