Woman found dead in Pasadena house fire

Woman dies in Pasadena house fire

A woman was found dead in a house fire on Saturday morning.

PASADENA, Calif. - Officials said a woman was found dead as crews knocked down a house fire in Pasadena on Saturday morning. 

What we know:

Pasadena firefighters were called to a house fire in the 1500 block of Lacashire Place, located off the intersection of Lida Street and Wellington Avenue, around 6:25 a.m. The area is located northwest of the Rose Bowl. 

By the time crews arrived, the house was already engulfed in flames, officials said.

What they're saying:

Neighbors identified the victim as a woman who lived alone and used a cane to walk. Brothers Kaius, 10, and Dash Menheim, 8, who live next door, said they woke to the smell of smoke.

"We walked outside and were like, oh my gosh — there’s flames over there," Kaius said. "So we ran to our parents’ room and said, there’s a fire, there’s a fire, there’s a fire! So we grabbed all our stuff."
 

Dash added, "I was really scared — it was quite chaotic."

Pasadena Police Chief Chad Augustin said hoarding conditions inside the home made it difficult for firefighters to get through and may have prevented the woman from escaping.

"There was not a clear path to exit, and when you wake up and it’s smoky, and the house is on fire, it’s easy to get disoriented," Augustin said. "If you can’t see and you don’t have a clear way to get out of your house, it’s really tough."

He added that the home did not have a working smoke detector, which could have given the resident critical time to escape. He said the tragic story should serve as a reminder - always have a clear path to exit your home, make sure your smoke detectors are working, and "When you go to bed at night, close your door," Augustin said. "It helps prevent fire and toxic gases from entering your room and gives you precious time to evacuate."

What we don't know:

The name of the victim has not been released. 

Firefighters say the cause of the fire appears to be accidental, and is under investigation.