House Fire Causes $110,000 in Damage

A fire that started in the garage of a house at 436 Purdy St. in Placentia destroyed two brand new cars and caused $110,000 damage, authorities said.

Orange County firefighters received the alarm about 3:20 p.m. and had the fire under control in about one hour, county Fire Department dispatcher Joni Mattes said. No one was in the house when the fire broke out, she said. The owner, Thomas Crippen, was out of town.

The cause of the fire was still under investigation, but it was not believed to be arson, Mattes said. The damage was split evenly between the house itself and its contents.

“One of the cars was a (Buick) Riviera worth about $20,000,” Mattes said.