A nighttime fire burned a home in Ben Lomond last week but did not spread beyond the confines of the four-bedroom, three-bathroom house at 784 Arenosa Ave.
The fire began at 10:49 p.m. Jan. 16 and was extinguished by about midnight. Firefighters remained at the house until morning to ensure the fire was out.
The occupants, a married couple and their 4-year-old son, escaped from the house. However, two dogs were killed by the fire, and a cat was found alive on a bed.
Fire crews from Ben Lomond and Zayante fire protection districts and Cal Fire responded to the call.
The fire began underneath the home, said Ben Lomond Chief Stacie Brownlee, but she added that determining the cause of the fire would be left to insurance investigators.
A natural gas line was severed during the fire, causing concern among firefighters about a chance of explosion, Brownlee said.
“It was blowing out a big flame against the house,” Brownlee noted.
She said she had not spoken to the residents, despite attempts to reach them.
“They took off, so we did not have a chance to talk to them,” Brownlee said this week. “I still haven’t heard from them.”
The Santa Cruz Sentinel reported finding a setup for marijuana cultivation, including an indoor irrigation and electrical system, in a room on the lower level of the house. Several plants were intact, and others were found burned. The materials had been cleared from the home by this week.
