Fire Dept: Blaze Caused By Child Playing With Matches

EL PASO — Fire officials say the massive centralcity apartment fire looks to have been caused bya child playing with matches.

ABC-7 has learned from fire officials that a boy was playing with matches in his mother’s room when a mattress caught fire. Several fire crews were still on the scene Monday morning, making sure nothing flares up once again.

The flames were first reported at the Linda Vista Apartments near the 1500 block of Magruder.

Residents who spoke to ABC 7 were alarmed by the sight of the blaze.

“It just kept getting bigger and bigger, even though they kept spraying water on it. From whatI saw -they were usingfive hoses but it just kept getting bigger and bigger,” said Daniel Tyler, who was evacuated from his unit for safety reasons.

Fire investigators said all of the units at the building share a common attic – which enabled the fire to spread quickly. At this point, they do not suspect arson was involved. Officials estimated the damage at the building to be more than one-million dollars.

It took more than 130 firefightersalmost three hoursto contain the fire.

Fire Department spokesman Lt. Mario Hernandez said all of the residents of the building were evacuated safely and no major injuries were reported.

Officials with the fire department say more than 24 families were taken in Sun Metro buses to Ross Middle School, where they will likely spend the next two days.

Tony Escobedo, emergency manager for the Red Cross, said beds, blankets and meals will be provided for the families at the middle school.

by Joe Villasana