CAMARILLO : House Fire Causes $220,000 in Damage

Embers from holiday wrapping paper burning in a fireplace ignited a three-alarm house fire Tuesday that left a Camarillo woman and her son homeless on Christmas Day, authorities said.

The 11:54 a.m. fire at 154 Hughes Drive caused an estimated $220,000 in damage to the house and contents and left one firefighter with minor injuries, said Dave Chovanec, an investigator for the Ventura County Fire Department.

Chovanec said Linda Hughes and her son were burning wrapping paper in the living-room fireplace late Christmas morning. A screen covered the mouth of the chimney, but failed to contain the flaky embers, he said.

“Under normal circumstances, not having a spark arrester is not a big deal,” said Fire Capt. Rod Sims, who supervised 75 firefighters and 12 engines. “But in a dry wind situation, with these horrendous wood-shake roofs, it’s a major problem.”

“The sparks from the fireplace got underneath the shake shingle roof,” Chovanec said. “They smoldered for a while, burned through the roofing paper and into the attic.”

The fire destroyed about three-fourths of the 2,500-square-foot house and 30% of its contents, which were valued at $350,000, Chovanec said.

Sims said Firefighter Mike Eggelston suffered second-degree heel burns, for which he was treated and released from Pleasant Valley Hospital.