House fire kills 2

An early morning fire on Sunday killed two people and destroyed all but the exterior walls of a West Cameron Street home, Hanford Fire Department officials said. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Firefighters were called to 115 W. Cameron Street at 7 a.m. after a report came in of a structure fire that had fully engulfed a residence. Three engines and 10 firefighters responded to the scene, while additional units were called in to help contain the blaze, which was threatening nearby buildings.

During the fire suppression efforts, firefighters found the bodies of two men in the wreckage. Neither of the victims has been identified yet, pending a forensic dental examination and autopsy.

"We should have information on the identities by Wednesday or Thursday at the latest," Deputy Coroner Tom Edmonds said.

Initial containment of the fire only lasted a half-hour, but firefighters remained on the scene until 9:30 p.m. Sunday to sort through the wreckage.

"Our investigators were out there all day, but we've released the property back to its owners now," Fire Captain Brad Farr said.

The cause of the fire is unknown at this time, but fire investigators said that the cause does not appear to be suspicious.

"We still have to conduct some interviews, but we will probably announce the cause by the end of the week," Fire Engineer Michael Briones said. "We are at a weird phase in the investigation where we need to tie up a lot of loose ends. Once we have the autopsy results and fill in a few more unanswered questions, we should have a better idea of what happened."

The reporter can be reached at 583-2425.

(Dec. 1, 2008)