Spyglass Hill Home Destroyed in Blaze Sparked by Wiring

Faulty wiring in an outdoor security light ignited a fire Thursday morning that gutted a $10-million mansion in Newport Beach’s exclusive Spyglass Hill neighborhood, fire officials said.

The owners of the property on Ridgeline Drive had been on vacation for several days, family members reported, and the lights may have been on since Sunday.

One of the more than 50 firefighters tackling the blaze was taken to Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian for smoke inhalation and fatigue, said Donna Boston, a Newport Beach fire spokeswoman.

The fire at the hillside home was reported shortly after 6 a.m. and took more than three hours to knock down, Boston said.

The three-story colonial home included gold-plated faucets, a Steinway grand piano, valuable antiques, paintings and hand-woven, custom-made Belgian rugs. It had seven bedrooms, 14 bathrooms and a pool and had just been redecorated with millions of dollars worth of fine furniture and artwork, family members said.

The home belonged to Dennis Cocco, president of the computer microchip firm Clare Micronix Integrated Systems Inc. in Aliso Viejo, and his wife, Jill. He was vacationing in Canada with his 10-year-old twin boys but boarded a plane home Thursday after being informed of the fire by his secretary.

His wife is on an African safari with their 11-year-old daughter. Two other children--ages 5 and 13--were staying at their nanny’s home when the fire broke out, said Jean Vanderheide, Jill Cocco’s mother.

Vanderheide, of Laguna Niguel, said her daughter painstakingly decorated the mansion and will be devastated when she returns Saturday. Each of the children’s rooms was hand painted by an artist who rendered scenes according to the children’s hobbies, Vanderheide said.

“She loved this house. The furnishings were worth more than the house itself,” Vanderheide said as she stared at the ruined mansion in disbelief.

Not all was lost, however. The family dog, Cokie, was rescued--as was the family Bible, Boston said. Three family cars, including a Rolls-Royce limousine and a Mercedes, were towed away from the garage unscathed.

Firefighters were also able to salvage several valuable paintings, some photo albums and a chandelier, according to Randy Scheerer, the fire department’s training chief.

Although every room had a smoke alarm, the home had no fire sprinklers, and its slate roof and plaster walls made it difficult to vent the rooms to “cool the flames,” Boston said.

“What really would have helped was if the attic had a sprinkler,” she said.

Costa Mesa and Orange County Fire Authority crews helped Newport Beach firefighters douse the flames, she said.

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Times staff writer Hector Becerra contributed to this report.