Costa Mesa : Woman Dies in Fire; Cigarette Is Blamed
A cigarette smoldering in an overstuffed chair was the cause of a mobile home fire that killed a woman, fire officials said Friday.
Coroner’s officials were awaiting dental records to positively identify the victim, but authorities believe that she was the occupant of the residence, Ruthe S. Grosz, 59.
The fire occurred about 8:30 p.m. Thursday at the Play Port Mobile Village on West 17th Street. Fire Marshal Tom Macduff said that the victim probably fell asleep, with a cigarette burning, while sitting in the chair in the living room. She apparently woke up and tried to escape the flames, he said. Her body was found in a nearby doorway.
A neighbor attempted to enter the home to rescue the victim, but “he wasn’t able to get in,” Macduff said. “It was too hot.”
The mobile home was destroyed by the blaze.
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