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Las Casitas fire destroys double-wide mobilehome
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Three persons fled their double-wide mobilehome in the Las Casita Mobilehome Park, 2841 Fowler Road, on Wednesday evening after a fire of suspicious origin quickly engulfed the structure.

"The eight-year-old daughter woke up to noise and alerted her parents and they all got out," said Chief Bryan Nicholes. "It's a good thing because that time of morning there's not a lot of people out to see things."

Nicholes said the fire is still under investigation but based on evidence it appears the fire started outside the home under suspicious circumstances. He said the park is a nice family environment and the family had no enemies that they know of.

The first call came in at 4:11 a.m. When the first fire engine arrived, the fire was shooting out two sides of the home. An aggressive interior attack was initiated to keep the fire from spreading.

"Mobile homes go up pretty fast," commented Nicholes.

A second alarm was called and both Modesto and Stanislaus Consolidated fire departments responded. According to Battalion Chief Michael Lillie, the mutual aid crews arrived in time to relieve Ceres crews on the interior who were running out of air.

A total of 15 personnel responded to the structure fire.

The only damage to neighboring structures was a heat damaged awning on a unit next door, said Nicholes.

Earlier on Wednesday Ceres firefighters fought a grass fire in the field behind Del Taco and the medical office at Mitchell/Whitmore. The fire burned three-quarters of an acre and oleander shrubs along the parking lot.