Wellton blaze kills 1

A woman died in a fire early Sunday morning that destroyed two homes and threatened others in a mobile home park near Wellton.

The call came in at 1:09 a.m. Sunday, said Wellton Fire Chief Mark Rivera. When firefighters arrived, two trailers were fully engulfed in flames. Both trailers burned to the ground and one vehicle also was destroyed.

Witnesses reported hearing several explosions from home oxygen tanks in the trailer where the fire started, Rivera said. The occupant was pulled from the home by her son and a bystander.

Emergency medical personnel moved the victim to a landing zone and performed CPR on her for about half a hour before she was declared dead by hospital medical staff, said Greg Givens, an EMT with Tri-Valley Ambulance.

The woman's son, who was injured trying to rescue his mother, was transported by Rural/Metro Ambulance, Givens said.

Identification of the victims was being withheld pending completion of the investigation, Rivera said.

The fire occurred at Mina's Mobile Manors, Avenue 31E and County 11th Street. Fire had spread to the trailer next door and it and all contents were destroyed. However, the occupant, a migrant farm worker, was not injured. His two vehicles also were saved.

"It could have been a lot worse," said Rivera. He said at the time of the fire, there was a strong wind out of the south and nearby homes in the small park were threatened, including two trailers and a double-wide. He said the park was full of smoke and was evacuated.

"I want to thank all the people who responded - the agencies and the bystanders," Rivera said. "It would have been a lot worse without their rapid response."

In addition to the Wellton Fire Department, the Tacna Fire Department, Rural Metro, Wellton Police Department, Yuma County Sheriff's Office, Tri-Valley Ambulance and Tri-State Air Flight responded. The Wellton-Mohawk Irrigation and Power District also responded to secure the power at the scene.

The fire was contained at about 3:45 a.m., Rivera said. One fire crew stayed at the scene through the remainder of the night to contain hot spots and secure the scene.

Cause of the fire is under investigation, he said.


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Joyce Lobeck can be reached at jlobeck@yumasun.com or 539-6853.