A two-alarm house fire in Pittsburg early Monday morning left three women dead, and Contra Costa County fire officials say the deaths possibly could have been prevented.
The victims were in a home in the 200 block of Dimaggio Avenue, close to Highway 4 and Railroad Avenue. which reportedly caught fire at about 12:30 a.m., Battalion Chief Lewis Broschard said.
The fire was contained in about 30 minutes, though crews remained at the scene for several hours.
Fire officials say the women who died likely had no warning since there were no working smoke detectors in the home. Firefighters said they found three smoke detectors on a counter that were uninstalled.
Firefighters said the three women were likely asleep when the fire started and overcome by the smoke as they tried to escape.
“It’s an older lady and two other ladies about their 30s, 40s,” neighbor Mario Missiago said. “They were some nice people. I don’t understand why this had to happen to them.”
All three were declared dead at the scene, Broschard said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Bay City News contributed to this report.
