A fire ripped through a Reseda home on Monday, claiming the life of a cat and leaving the residence in ruins. As reported by NBC Los Angeles, the blaze, which broke out around 5:40 p.m. on the 19300 block of W. Cantara Street, was intense enough to draw an upgraded response from the Los Angeles Fire Department after initial reports indicated an explosion.
The flames quickly spread, causing minor damage to the roof of an adjacent dwelling, though it's not entirely clear how extensive the spread of the fire was. Luckily, there were no injuries to humans, and three animals were able to survive the ordeal, despite the tragic loss of one of the family's cats. The Los Angeles Fire Department's alert confirmed that although the home where the fire started was considered a total loss, the fire's progression to neighboring structures was halted.
Firefighters arrived at the scene to discover the single-family dwelling well engulfed in flames. It took 50 firefighters roughly 24 minutes to knock down the fire, as detailed in a follow-up alert by LAFD. During the incident, two pet cats were reported as unaccounted for; later updates confirmed the unfortunate demise of one of these pets.
Investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing. While the loss of a pet is heartrending, the quick response of the fire department arguably saved lives and prevented a bad situation from turning into an utter disaster. Further information about the incident may emerge once the LAFD completes its investigation and publically shares their findings.
