Fire breaks out at Merced apartment complex

A fire burned through nearly a dozen units of an apartment complex early Wednesday in Merced, displacing 11 elderly and disabled residents.

Flames broke out around 4 a.m. at the Merced Golden Manor apartment complex in the 300 block of T Street, Merced Fire Department Battalion Chief Billy Alcorn said. The complex is a few blocks east of the Merced Regional Airport.

Firefighters put early damage estimates at $387,000.

Investigators have not determined what caused the fire, but say it’s suspicious and appears to have started in a recently vacated unit.

No one was injured, firefighters said, thanks in large part to at least two unidentified people who were passing by and alerted residents inside to the fire. Alcorn said those good Samaritans and the fact the units had working smoke detectors prevented any injuries in the blaze.

Aberta Johnson, 69, was one of the residents who awoke to sounds of yelling and someone pounding on her door. “Someone was shouting ‘get out’ and it was so smoky,” Johnson said. “I opened my front door and the smoke just got worse.”

Twenty-three firefighters responded to the blaze: 18 from the city and four from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, Merced County.

Connie Happs lives in a unit about 100 yards from where the fire occurred and was afraid her son, Israel, who lives just two units away from the blaze, may have been hurt. She said she was relieved when she saw him a short time later.

“I was in bed and there was this big explosion. ... It sounded like a bomb ... and there were flames just bursting everywhere,” Happs said. “He (my son) lives right there; I was scared to death.”

Israel Happs, 39, was already awake and cooking breakfast when the fire started. He lost almost everything he owns, but said he’s grateful nobody was injured.

Phyllis Cruz also fears all of her things were destroyed by the fire. “The roof is all caved in; there’s just nothing left of it now,” she said.

The American Red Cross Central Valley is helping displaced residents with food, clothing and shelter, spokeswoman Sherry Pitchford said.

Several displaced residents planned to stay with relatives, others were provided hotel rooms.

Battalion Chief Don Roe said investigators were still following up on possible leads in the case Wednesday afternoon, but said he could not elaborate.

Israel Happs said he was particularly grateful to the unidentified people who knocked on doors and alerted everyone to the danger. “They were just good Samaritans,” he said. “This is disastrous, but they really helped.”

This story was originally published January 21, 2015 at 6:36 AM with the headline "Fire breaks out at Merced apartment complex."