Sept. 18--An elderly couple died in a fire at their home Sunday morning, Vallejo firefighters and neighbors said.
At about 11:10 a.m., firefighters responded to a report of smoke coming from a home in the 300 block of Ladera Drive in southeast Vallejo, and called 911, Interim Fire Chief Paige Meyer said.
Upon arrival, firefighters said they found the elderly woman unconscious, and promptly brought her out into the front yard in an unsuccessful attempt to revive her.
Firefighters also found her husband's body in another area of the house, and he was also pronounced dead at the scene.
"He was found deceased with obvious overwhelming fire injuries," Meyer said.
The fire was placed under control within 10 minutes, but a second alarm was called because of the fatalities, he added.
Meyer estimated the damages to the house at $75,000.
Neighbors said the couple has been living in the house for more than 50 years. The woman was an invalid, a neighbor said.
The residents of Ladera Drive said they were surprised to see the fire engines and police cars in what they deemed a peaceful neighborhood Sunday morning.
"This is by far the most action I've had seen in the past five to six years I've lived here," a neighbor said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, and fire officials declined to comment when asked whether foul play is suspected.
"The investigation is conducted as if it is a homicide when there's a fatality involved," Vallejo fire Battalion Chief Kathryn Harpold said.
A Benicia Fire Department unit came to the scene to help with the fire, and other mutual aid responses assisted Vallejo Fire Department in city coverage.
The names of the victims were withheld pending notification of the next of kin.
Contact staff writer Irma Widjojo at (707) 553-6835 or [email protected].
