The grief-stricken El Dorado County community is grappling with the aftermath of last Wednesday's tragedy, where a fire engulfed a Somerset residence, claiming the lives of two teenagers. According to KCRA, the Pioneer Fire Protection District Chief David Whitt announced that the cause of the blaze remains undetermined, saying, "By the time we got there, the house was fully involved, We're going to rule the fire undetermined." Investigations have led officials to believe the fire was accidental, without ruling out the possibility that combustible materials near an alternative heat source might have ignited the flames.
Chief Whitt pointed out that the home, already ravaged by fire upon the arrival of emergency crews, lacked working electricity and did not appear to have smoke detectors; one of the adults managed to call 911 after escaping the inferno, alerting responders that the building was fully involved and that two young individuals were trapped inside. Two adults and two teens managed to escape while the fire claimed the lives of a 14-year-old girl and 15-year-old boy—high school freshman Noah Chesterman whose family described him as a "light to his family" and "a kind-hearted kid that loved everyone he met and he took care of everyone around him," in a conversation with CBS13.
The proximity of the fire station to the incident did little to change the outcome; crews responded within 30 seconds of the call, as the mobile home was directly across from their location on Mt. Aukum Road in the Candlelight Village. Chief Whitt explained the inherent vulnerabilities of mobile homes to fire, stating, "The fire, especially in a mobile home, gets a really big head start. They're not designed to burn. They're designed to keep weather out, and that's about it. They're very thin material, very thin walls, very limited construction," in an interview obtained by CBS13.
Questions still linger over whether smoke detectors were operational and how long the blaze took hold before the occupants were alerted; Discussing the likelihood that the fire advanced without the occupants' knowledge Whitt said, "We won't know that so we know that several of the occupants were woken up. We're not exactly sure if the two victims had been woken up during the fire. So we're assuming that there probably was not working smoke detectors within the home," as per CBS13. The community, in an effort to assist the grieving families, has rallied behind a fundraiser intended for the funeral costs of those lost in the fire.
