Fire damages unoccupied home in Ocean Crest neighborhood

A small amount of smoke rises from a rooftop next to a firefighter s ladder Photo courtesy Onscene Media A fire damaged part of the second floor and attic of an unoccupied home in San Diego on Tuesday morning but no injuries were announced Crews responded at around a m Tuesday to reports of heavy smoke coming from the upper level of a boarded-up two-story home in the block of Mariner Dr in the Ocean Crest neighborhood Mariner Drive According to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department crews were able to force their way into the structure and put out the blaze in under an hour A total of personnel responded to the scene including five engines two trucks and one medic unit Additional support were assigned due to an excessive amount of clutter inside the home personnel declared Battalion chief Josh Slatinsky stated that the structure has been vacant for about three years It is a boarded up structure he announced However he added while there are no specific leads at the moment there are known issues with this particular home We are talking to MAST investigators but there s a history with the house and the city and the court systems According to Onscene Media the courts took over the home as the owner was deemed to be mentally unfit and the owner keeps returning and bringing trash indoors Additionally the house has heavy hoarder conditions according to reports Personnel from the city of Chula Vista also assisted in the effort The cause of the fire remains under scrutiny City News Utility and Onscene Media contributed to this summary