SANTA ANA : Firefighter Stricken at Home Blaze

A firefighter was stricken with heat exhaustion Tuesday afternoon while battling a blaze that destroyed a home.

Dennis Marinello, 34, was taken to Western Medical Center-Santa Ana, where he was listed in serious condition, a nursing supervisor said.

Six family members lived in the two-story home, but only one, 62-year-old Pauline Flores, was at home when the fire began, officials said. She escaped before firefighters arrived and was not injured, according to witnesses.

The rest of the family--identified as homeowner Phillip Reyes, 31; his wife, Audrey, 21; his father, Rodolpho, 63; and the Reyes’ two children, ages 2 and 10 months--were away at work or shopping when the fire started about 1 p.m., authorities said.

The Orange County Red Cross planned to provide temporary housing and food for the family, said spokesman Doug Gavilanes.

The blaze, which caused more than $245,000 damage, began in the basement and quickly spread up a rear wall to the attic, said Karl Ellman, a Fire Department spokesman.

Neighbor Robert Steven Hegareda, 26, said he saw smoke coming from the basement and tried to enter through a rear door to see if anyone was still inside. He pounded on the basement door four times before the thick smoke forced him away, he said.

“The most concern was to get who was in the house out,” he said.

Fire officials said 27 firefighters responded to the blaze and extinguished it in about half an hour. The cause of the fire is under investigation.