A fire in a Citrus Heights mobile home park claimed the life of a female resident early Friday morning.
The unidentified woman was found dead, along with two small dogs, inside a recreational vehicle at the Auburn Vista Mobile Home Park at 7721 Auburn Blvd., when Sacramento Metro firefighters arrived on the scene about 2:30 a.m., said Battalion Chief Patrick Ellis.
Ellis said the RV was apparently the woman's home.
Multiple emergency calls from mobile home park residents started coming in about 2:26 a.m. While firefighters were responding, reports came in from witnesses that someone may be trapped in the home.
"When firefighters arrived, a majority of the home was involved in fire," Ellis said. "Rescue crews cut into the side of the RV to gain access, and found the deceased adult and two small dogs."
Ellis said the fire currently doesn't seem to be of a suspicious nature, but investigators are on the scene to find the cause and origin. It's not known if the home had working smoke detectors.
"She was a smoker, and we did see cigarette butts around her bed, so we're making the assumption she may have smoked in bed," Ellis said. "We're also looking at possible mechanical problems with her propane heater."
Ellis said the incident underscores the safety issues associated with living in mobile homes and RVs.
"Access to mobile homes is difficult for us, and it's more difficult for residents to get out of, because of small doorways and windows that are hard to open wide enough for escape," he said. "That makes mobile home fires more dangerous and often fatal."
The Sacramento County coroner's office has not released the name of the deceased, pending positive identification and notification of relatives.
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