SAN DIEGO -- A man found unconscious inside a burning apartment in the City Heights area Monday night died before he could be taken to a hospital, fire officials said.
The victim, whose name was not immediately available, was found shortly before 11 p.m. as fire crews were working to extinguish a blaze in a lower level unit in the rear of the two-story apartment building on Altadena Avenue near Sterling Court, San Diego Fire-Rescue Department spokesman Lee Swanson said. He died while en route to Scripps Mercy Hospital.
The victim’s roommate was able to make it out alive by jumping out of a window. That man was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation.
Swanson said firefighters prevented the fire from spreading, although the apartment above the one in which the blaze broke out sustained minor damage and a third unit had light smoke damage. Crews had the blaze knocked down in about 15 minutes.
The American Red Cross was summoned to assist two men and two women with emergency lodging, Swanson said.
Fire officials estimated the damage caused by the fire at $250,000. The cause remained under investigation.
