‘Now we lost everything’: Fire destroys nine homes in Desert Hot Springs
Nine homes were destroyed, along with 12 vehicles, in a fire that ripped through an RV park in Desert Hot Springs. About 100 people were evacuated and 59 mobile homes damaged, Cal Fire said.
“Now we lost everything that we worked hard for, and now we’re homeless,” said Mariana Verduzco, whose father lost his home and truck in the fire.
Fire crews responded shortly before 1 p.m. Tuesday to the Country Squire RV Park in the 66-400 block of Dillon Road. The blaze quickly went to a second alarm as crews called for additional support. Firefighters from Cathedral City, Hemet, Palm Springs and the Soboba Reservation assisted.
Due to the presence of a 500-gallon propane tank, the entire trailer park was evacuated as a precaution, fire officials said. At one point, the fire had spread to the tamarisk trees that surround the park.
No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire was not known.
Verduzco, who lived in her father's house until a year ago, said her husband and her kids were there when the fire started. And she was the one to call her father, Martin Verduzco-Soto, to tell him about the fire.
He arrived around 3 p.m., his daughter said, and was still processing what happened as their home sat in ashes.
“It was so hard (to see) because it’s not just about, you know, the material things,” Mariana Verduzco said. “It’s all the memories and my kids grew up there … everything that (my parents) have, that’s all they have.”
Verduzco said her husband told her everyone in the house was about to take a nap at the time the fire started because the baby had fallen asleep.
“So I can only imagine what could have happened," she said. "My grandma’s handicapped and she was living with my mom and she just left two days ago. I know we would’ve not been able to get her out.”
She said this isn't the first fire at the trailer park and the family is worried about what comes next.
First responders worked through the extreme heat to keep residents cool and get them to safety. A Sun Bus was used as a mobile cooling center, and a cooling and reception center was set up at the Desert Hot Springs Library, 14-380 Palm Drive.
Firefighters contained the blaze at 4:15 p.m. and remained at the scene into the evening, Cal Fire said.
With power and water shut off, all the residents of the park had to find other accommodations for the night or go to the overnight evacuation center at Desert Hot Springs High School, said Detective Sgt. Christopher Saucier of Desert Hot Springs police.
The American Red Cross said it has provided emergency lodging, meals and additional support to 51 evacuees.
Ricardo Sanchez and his family were heading to the evacuation center after their home was heavily damaged. He was at work when the fire started, but the rest of his family was home, and he said he felt sick about their loss.
“We have to figure it out because … right now I don’t know what we’re going to do,” he said. “I’m worried for my family, that’s all.”
Sanchez’s brother Juan Lara lives with the family and said only their living room seemed to be OK.Some things can’t be replaced, but it’s good nobody was hurt, he said.“I mean this is devastating. Honestly, it’s crazy because this (is) something that you don’t expect that’s gonna happen,” he said. “Now we got to figure out where we’re going to go. It's not easy.”
April Martinez's home wasn't damaged, and she said she thought there had only been a power outage until her neighbor banged on their door to tell them to evacuate. The fire was within two houses.
“I looked out the window and there was like a huge fire and smoke,” Martinez said. “It was a really, really scary experience.”
Desert Sun staff photographer Jay Calderon contributed to this report, as did City News Service.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Fire in Desert Hot Springs RV park leaves families homeless
