Fullerton Man Is Killed as Fire Guts His Home

A 63-year-old man was killed Tuesday when a fire apparently sparked by a cigarette gutted his Fullerton home, officials and the man’s housekeeper said.

His live-in housekeeper and caretaker escaped from the burning house by crawling through a window.

Officials declined to name the man until his family was notified. The caretaker, Sofina Tabares, said the victim was a heavy smoker who suffered from sleep apnea and used an oxygen tank.

He was found dead in his living room after firefighters put out the 2:20 p.m. blaze in the 1700 block of West Avenue, said Fullerton Police Sgt. Linda King.

The victim smoked two packs of unfiltered Pall Mall cigarettes a day, Tabares said. “I tell him all the time, ‘You need to turn off that tank when you’re smoking because I don’t want to blow up in this house,’ ” Tabares said.

Tabares said she was sleeping when intense heat woke her. She climbed through a window while a neighbor called 911 after spotting smoke and flames shooting from the one-story home.

The blaze began in the living room, where the victim was found, said Fullerton Fire Marshall Julie Kunze. An investigation is continuing to determine its cause.