Santa Maria residents are picking up the pieces after a fast-moving fire tore through the carports at Summergate Apartments early Tuesday morning, destroying more than a dozen vehicles.
An investigation is now underway as fire officials are calling it a likely case of arson. The fire broke out just before 1 a.m., with crews responding within minutes. However, by the time firefighters arrived, both the north and south carports were fully engulfed.
When [firefighters] arrived on scene, coming down Blosser, they pulled in and both the south carport and then we had another north carport fully involved and all the vehicles too, said Santa Maria Fire Marshal Jim Austin, who says several other cars were damaged due to heat exposure.
Austin confirmed that just moments before the fire started, Santa Maria police had stopped a vehicle near the railroad tracks adjacent to the complex. The driver fled the scene before the car could be towed. Investigators are now looking into whether that incident is connected to the fire.
I’m confident the fires were intentionally ignited. There was [a] potential related incident on the railroad tracks over here. PD had stopped a vehicle who ran down the railroad tracks, but then the person fled. While they were waiting for a tow truck for that vehicle, this fire erupted, Austin said. And so, we are not sure if those two incidents are related, but they are in close proximity and time and distance to each other.
For Randy Camacho and his family, the flames werent just a threat, they were personal. Camacho says he woke up to popping sounds outside his window and ran outside to find neighbors screaming and fire trucks rushing in.
Were really sad, you know, thats our family van. The car seats are burned down, there were DVDs, their toys. We had that van for about, well, we got it right when the twins were born, he said.
Camacho and his family were able to evacuate safely, but their family van, along with many other residents cars, was destroyed. He says he and his partner couldnt sleep the night after the fire, worried the next blaze could be worse.
There was a fire behind this building just a few weeks ago, Camacho said. What if next time it spreads to someone’s home? Were all on edge.
The fire at Summergate is the latest in a series of suspicious fires reported within a five-block radius in the past month. Investigators say several of those have been classified as arson or suspicious in nature, and while they havent directly connected the incidents, theyre not ruling anything out.
Weve had a number of fires in this area and they, most of them have been determined to be arson or suspicious in nature. We have a few persons of interest that we have identified, Austin said. I cant say that this person is connected to this incident [or] to any other incidents right now.
The Camacho family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help replace their van and cover transportation costs, especially since Randys partner relies on it for work. Those wishing to help can visit the fundraiser using this link.
Residents are being asked to remain alert and report any suspicious activity. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Santa Maria Fire Department at (805)-925-0951, extension 8533.