Man Found Dead After Fire in Apartment

A 50-year-old Ventura man was found dead in his kitchen Sunday night by firefighters responding to a blaze in the apartment, authorities said.

The man’s name was withheld pending notification of his family. Neighbors said he lived in the small, two-story complex in the 300 block of Wall Street for a couple of years.

“Everybody in the building talked to him all the time,” said Hekar Rivera. “He said he worked at the [Ventura] Theatre.”

The blaze was reported about 7 p.m., and when firefighters arrived they found flames shooting from windows in the victim’s first-floor unit.

About a dozen people were evacuated, but no other injuries were reported.

Although witnesses said they heard a loud explosion before seeing flames, authorities believe the fire was an accident because no signs of accelerants were found.

Ventura Fire Capt. Myles Smith said it appears the man was visiting an upstairs neighbor and then ran downstairs to his own apartment after the fire started.

Flames gutted the victim’s bedroom and living room but not the kitchen. An autopsy is scheduled.

The fire, which was put out in about 10 minutes, didn’t spread to the other seven units in the complex. But the apartment of the neighbor the victim was visiting may have suffered smoke damage, authorities said. American Red Cross volunteers were trying to determine if the man needed lodging.

A damage estimate wasn’t available late Sunday.