Family of 10 Loses House, Not Life, in Fire : Tragedy: A Romanian emigre and his family will have to start over, but he feels lucky that they were gone when fire raced through the house.

A Romanian emigre family of 10 lost most of its possessions when flames raced through their house Sunday, fire officials said.

Paul Placinta, who moved to the United States about nine years ago and has lived in Garden Grove for three years, stood outside the charred remains of the residence at 11072 Paloma Ave. on Sunday morning assessing the damage with an insurance adjuster.

In an interview later from a local hotel where he and his family were placed by the Red Cross, Placinta said he, his wife and eight children were away from the house when the fire occurred shortly before midnight Saturday.

On Sunday, shortly after midnight, he returned home to find that “the street was blocked with a whole bunch of police and fire cars.”

“I realized that this was my house,” he said in a thick Romanian accent. “When that happens, you feel like you want to quit. I lost almost everything.”

Despite the tragedy, Placinta said, he was fortunate that his family was visiting relatives at the time of the fire. “I’m lucky. Nobody was hurt,” he said.

Garden Grove Fire Department officials said the fire started at 11:53 p.m. Saturday and had engulfed much of the house before firefighters arrived. Sixteen firefighters battled the blaze, which was controlled in about 15 minutes, officials said. Three engine companies, one truck company and a paramedic unit responded.

A neighbor, John Handy, said he and his roommates were watching sports on a television in his garage when an unidentified child on a bicycle came by and said there was smoke coming from the house next door.

“I ran over there with two other guys and we banged on the windows and the doors, but they (the Placintas) were gone,” Handy said. “It looked like the fire started in one of the back bedrooms. It was just very scary because of the kids. I have a little girl who plays with them. . . . They’re always home.

“It looks like a bomb went off inside it,” Handy added.

Officials said damage was estimated at $130,000, including $90,000 to the structure and $40,000 to its contents. An investigation into the fire’s origins was continuing Sunday.

Red Cross officials arranged for the family to get temporary clothing and shelter. A spokeswoman for the Red Cross also said a local restaurant and a discount department store were donating food and clothing to the family.

Placinta, who works as a water systems operator in Santa Ana, said the fire investigators indicated to him that the blaze might have resulted from electrical problems.

“I just have to start all over again like I did when I came to this country,” he said.