A tragic fire swept through a Calabasas mobile home on Monday, resulting in the death of a wheelchair-bound woman, as confirmed by KTLA. The Los Angeles County Fire Department was dispatched to the scene at 23777 Mulholland Highway around 3:30 p.m., facing a mobile home and a vehicle ablaze. Despite their rapid response, which had the fire extinguished in less than 20 minutes, the loss was irreplaceable. A firefighter sustained a minor heat-related injury and was subsequently hospitalized.
Families in the Calabasas Village were shaken by the devastation, particularly with neighbors grieving the loss of their fellow community members. A woman described by ABC7 as a single mother who lived with her three children ranging from 15 to their early 20s, it was her eldest daughter who perished in the flames. Confusion permeated the tight-knit neighborhood as one neighbor, Gabi Gross, admitted to ABC7, "We didn't know that there was another daughter in a wheelchair," illustrating the profound impact unseen disabilities have within the community. The L.A. County Sheriff's Department intensified the situation by cordoning off the area and delving into an investigation with arson specialists.
Details surrounding the circumstances of the fire are still vague however, a 45-year-old woman was found deceased after responders extinguished the blaze, according to a report by FOX LA. Neighbors shed light on the harrowing ordeal recalling how they attempted to combat the fire and aid the victim’s family in the process. One neighbor recounted the mother's distressed exclamations, saying, "I didn't mean to do it. I didn't mean to do it," as she was urged to flee the impending danger.
The investigation is ongoing, and authorities are urging anyone with information to come forward, as clarification on the fire’s origins remains elusive.
