Cause of Saturday’s boutique fire unknown
A fire erupted at Virtu boutique Saturday morning, and the majority of its inventory was damaged, according to the Laguna Beach Fire Department.
Firefighters responded at 9:36 a.m. at 1042 N. Coast Hwy. They observed smoke coming from the ground level boutique and located the fire inside, Division Chief Dan Stefano said. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
“Laguna Beach firefighters quickly had to force their entry, locate the fire and promptly extinguish what could have been a much larger fire had a nearby resident not heard a smoke alarm and called 911,†Stefano said in an email.
The boutique has two residential floors above it. One of the apartments had moderate smoke damage but no fire damage, Stefano said.
Efforts by Laguna Beach and Orange County Fire Authority firefighters limited the structural damage, Stefano added.
A tenant was treated for a leg injury, but officials do not believe it was directly related to the fire.
Twitter: @joannaclay
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