Three Ecuadorian chefs lost nearly everything after a fire ravaged their Goleta home on Friday.

Said Coba, Jorge Jaramillo and Johann Jadán are on a J-1 visa to work at The Ritz-Carlton Bacara in Santa Barbara as chefs and shared a unit attached to the main home on St. George Place.

The unit included a living room area, a kitchen and a bathroom.

Jaramillo was cooking for an upcoming Friendsgiving dinner on Friday inside the main house as Jadán arrived home from work when they suddenly heard a big boom outside. 

The Santa Barbara County Fire Department was called out to the scene before 9 p.m., and firefighters found flames and smoke.

The fire displaced eight people, according to Jessica Hodge, disaster program manager for the American Red Cross. Fire officials initially reported five people were displaced.

Jamarillo called Coba, who was still on his shift at the hotel, but Coba thought his roommate was playing a cruel joke on him. Upon seeing the flames coming out of the home, he jumped on his bike, racing toward his home and filled with fear. 

“I think we all hugged in that moment, and I simply told everyone we can move forward. We didn’t lose it all. We have each other, and that is the most important,” Coba said. 

Jadán created a GoFundMe fundraiser to support them as they begin to rebuild their lives. Despite losing so much, they remain positive.

“Even though this was a tragedy, when the flames ended, we all were filled with gratitude that we have friends who are there for us and people who won’t leave our side at any moment,” Coba said.

The chefs currently live at The Ritz-Carlton Bacara, where they say the staff has helped them in every way possible.

On the night of the fire, the chefs said their work supervisors stayed with them until 1 a.m. 

“The hotel has not left us without a roof over our head and without food,” Coba said. “We are a little famous there, but not in the best way.”

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, according to County Fire Capt. Scott Safechuck. He said preliminary findings indicate that the fire was an accident. 

Once the fire was extinguished, the unit was left scorched. Most of the chefs’ important documents, work tools, clothing, groceries and gifts for their families abroad turned to ash. 

On Wednesday, they revisited the home. They sorted through clothes and burned items in hopes of finding anything worth saving. 

They were mostly concerned about their collection of culinary knives, which Jadán and Jaramillo said can cost between $400 and $700. They ended up finding three knives covered in ash, some with the handles partially melted. 

Jadán also found a Stanley water bottle with water still inside despite being covered in ash, giving the three a good laugh.

Jaramillo let out loud whoops after finding a Pokémon figurine covered in ash but still intact. His optimism grew as he continued finding more of his belongings.  

However, he became emotional after finding his traditional Ecuadorian sweater that his family had gifted him covered in ash.  

The trio first arrived in California in April from Quito, Ecuador, with a dream to become chefs after studying gastronomy at Universidad San Francisco de Quito.

“This city has brought us so much joy, so many blessings, and we are so happy and grateful for the community support,” Coba said.

Jadán said that when they arrived in Goleta, their unit was still in the process of being built.

“Since everything was practically new, something like this did not worry us,” he said.

After the fire, however, he said firefighters asked him about a smoke alarm. Only then did he notice that there was no smoke alarm in the unit after looking through photos of the rooms. 

“This is something no one expects to happen to them, but thankfully we are not alone,” Jaramillo said.