Arson investigators talk to residents of homeless encampment near Easy fire ignition point
Arson investigators talk to residents of homeless encampment near Easy fire ignition point
by Olga Grigoryants
As firefighters battled the growing Easy fire in Simi Valley that exploded Wednesday morning, Oct. 30, to more than 1,300 acres, investigators were on the ground near the area where it is thought to have ignited.
The blaze, which ignited around 6 a.m., quickly grew and was nearing the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library by midmorning.
MORE: This map shows where the Easy fire is burning in Simi Valley
Arson investigators talked to people living at a homeless encampment on Easy Street.
Silke Brown, 48, and her boyfriend Bill were in their tent near Easy Street in Simi Valley when someone started yelling, “Fire, fire!,” she said. The couple grabbed backpacks and started running along with about 20 others.
“We lost everything even though we didn’t have much,” she said.
Investigators asked the pair if they had seen how the fire started, Brown said.
She said she didn’t see anyone cooking or smoking in the encampment but heard popping before someone yelled “fire.”
The pair did not plan on going to an evacuation center, Brown said, adding that she wasn’t sure if they’d be allowed because they were homeless.
Her boyfriend Bill, who wanted to only use his first name, said: “I just prayed, ‘God save me because I don’t want to die.’” He walked along a trail and watched as smoke billowed into the sky.
Bill said he left his encampment in the middle of the night after the #EasyFire broke out. "I just prayed, 'God save me because I don't want to die," he said. pic.twitter.com/TVvQB6eDl5
— Olga Grigoryants (@OlgaGrigory) October 30, 2019
Fire officials have not released any details about what could have started the blaze. By 11 a.m. the firefight continued among strong Santa Ana winds.
Staff writer Alma Fausto contributed to this report.
All credit goes to Olga Grigoryants
Originally published on https://www.dailynews.com
