VENTURA : Police Evacuate 80 After Mattress Fire

About 80 tenants of a downtown Ventura apartment building were evacuated overnight Tuesday after a fire damaged the second floor and a resulting power outage made it unsafe for residents to return, Ventura fire officials said.

Because of water damage in the afternoon fire, the electricity was shut off on the first two floors of the seven-story complex at 137 S. Palm St., and tenants were put up by the American Red Cross at the Holiday Inn or went to stay with friends or family, said Battalion Chief Mike Lavery.

“There were no lights on the first two floors, which is where the residents would have to pass through if there was another emergency, so we didn’t feel it was safe for them to stay there,” Lavery said.

The building’s electrical system is scheduled to be inspected today, and tenants are expected to return after the inspection, he said.

The 1:14 p.m. fire was caused when a tenant fell asleep in bed with a cigarette, fire officials said.

Within 20 minutes, firefighters extinguished the blaze, which activated the building’s sprinklers, leading to the water damage. There were no injuries in the fire, which caused $5,000 to $10,000 in damage.

Another Ventura fire caused more damage early Tuesday. The three-alarm blaze in an office building at 5550 Telegraph Road caused $300,000 in damage to two law offices, officials said.

The 1:40 a.m. fire erupted after an employee emptied an ashtray into a trash can several hours earlier, officials said.

The fire at the law offices of Fillipi & Bell was contained by 2:10 a.m. and extinguished by 3:10 a.m., officials said.