Two Dead In Pleasant Hill Apartment Fire

Update, 3:50 p.m. Tuesday, on-the-scene photo from Craig Cannon, more details from Contra Costa County Fire Protection Service.

A double-fatal fire at a Pleasant Hill apartment complex early Tuesday morning killed two residents in their early thirties who were living in a unit without working smoke detectors, a fire captain said.

The fire was reported at 3:30 a.m. at 8 Donegal Court, near the Martinez border.

It started in the downstairs area of one unit, and fire crews arrived to find two units engulfed in flames, Contra Costa County fire Capt. Robert Marshall said.
           
Two people were unable to escape the fire, Marshall said. They were found in a bedroom in the upstairs part of the apartment.

"The two deceased residents did try to make an escape," Marshall said, who added that fire crews want to emphasize that having a working smoke detector "greatly increases chances of survival."

The fire displaced 60 people, and the American Red Cross was called to assist them with temporary housing.

Marshall said the cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Bay City News Service