It took 25 Garden Grove and Anaheim firefighters 20 minutes to put out a blaze that started in the garage of a home and resulted in exploding propane bottles, one man critically burned and six other adults displaced from the house, authorities said.
The fire was reported at 12:30 a.m. in the 11000 block of True Way, Garden Grove Fire Department Capt. Thanh Nguyen said.
The first arriving unit reported fire showing from the garage of a single story house and firefighters quickly discovered the flames had spread into the attic, Nguyen said.
“Firefighters were hampered by excessive storage conditions that included small propane bottles exploding,” he said.
The burned man was taken to a hospital before paramedics could assess him and later transferred by his family to a burn center where he was in critical condition, Nguyen said.
A fire investigator determined the blaze was accidental “and cannot rule out the use of a propane-fired heater and/or improper disposal of smoking material,” he said. One non-working smoke detector was found in the house.
Propane-fired heaters should be used in well-ventilated areas and not inside structures, Nguyen said.