Taking advantage of what is — thankfully — a rare opportunity, the Santa Barbara County Fire Department wants you to come see for yourself what the inside of a house looks like after it’s been gutted by fire.
Last week, a single-family house at 4511 Auhay Drive, off Hollister Avenue east of San Marcos High, was badly damaged in an accidental fire. The Fire Department will open the structure for tours from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
The idea is to educate the public on the dangers of fires, and the importance of installing smoke detectors, alarms and other safety devices.
Firefighters will be on hand to answer questions, and 2nd District Supervisor Janet Wolf is expected to pay a visit.
The owners of the property, Emmanuelle and John Ledbetter, gave the Fire Department permission to hold the demonstration.
The Ledbetters were fortunate no one was hurt seriously in the blaze, said fire Capt. Eli Iskow, a department spokesman. Only one of the five family members was home at the time of the fire, which ignited around 4:30 p.m. Feb. 12, he said. The individual was not seriously injured, although he did suffer minor smoke inhalation.
“Because of his location in the house, he did not notice the fast-moving fire until after it was well established,” Iskow said. “He was not alerted much earlier to the presence of the fire because the house did not have a functioning smoke alarm.”
The open house is part of a county Fire Department program called “Open Fire Safety House.” Although the program started in 1986, a South Coast home hasn’t been showcased in 12 years, Iskow said.
There have been a spate of house fires in the past few years in Santa Barbara County. Some have been deadly.
There is no time limit on this weekend’s tours, Iskow said.