San Pablo, CA- Multi-Fatal LODD Fire 07-21-07

[Truck4 48]

Date: 07-21-07

Time: 0145hrs

Location: Michele Drive, Montalvin Manor section of San Pablo

Description: Fire in a S/F/D with reports of people trapped. Members removed (1) victim and while attempting searches for a second resident, the home flashed over. (2) Contra Costa firefighters from E-70 (San Pablo) were killed, along with (2) residents.

Writer: Truck4

(AP) SAN PABLO -- Four people, including two Contra Costa County firefighters, died in an early morning house fire today in unincorporated San Pablo, authorities said.

Contra Costa County Fire Protection District Capt. Matt Burton, 34, of Concord, Fire Engineer Scott Desmond, 37, of Brentwood, and residents Delbert Moore, 67, and his wife, Gayle, 62, died in the blaze at the Moore's home on Michele Drive in the Montalvin Manor neighborhood, authorities said.

The firefighters were based with Engine Company 70 on San Pablo Avenue in San Pablo. They were the first on-duty deaths in the fire district's history, said Fire Chief Keith Richter.

"Obviously, this is a devastating loss for the district and certainly for their families," Richter said. "Our hearts go out to them."

Gayle Moore has served as state head of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, an international nonprofit organization. She recently retired from the group to take care of her ailing husband, who suffered from diabetes and emphysema and got around in a scooter. Both smoked, but the cause of the blaze was under investigation.

"It's bad. I was down there watching it," said Montalvin Manor resident Sharon Cook, 50, as she walked her dog, Faye. "It's a dangerous job, and it's something they don't get much appreciation for. They just figure it's their duty, their job, but they don't realize that firefighters have lives and families."

The fire was reported at the home about 1:45 a.m. Firefighters were told that the two residents were unaccounted for and began searching for them as a fire raged inside the house, Richter said.

One resident was found and pulled out of the home, and a search resumed for the other person, Richter said.

At that point, a "flashover" occurred, which results when hot gases build up and causes bursts of flame to erupt, Richter said. That trapped the firefighters, who could not be saved. They did not make it out," the chief said.

Richter said there were no indications that there was a delayed response by firefighters nor problems with water pressure.

The firefighters who died wore standard gear, including coats, helmets and self-contained breathing apparatus, but the material "won't stand up for very long" under intense heat from a flashover, Richter said.

Contra Costa fire and sheriff's investigators cordoned off part of Michele Drive as they documented the scene and tried to determine what started the blaze. They were also joined by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and state Cal Fire officials.

The home is a total loss, and its roof burned up or collapsed in the fire.

"There will obviously be a lot of questions asked in the investigation," Richter said. "We're still trying to put the pieces together."

The Moores leave behind a daughter, Gwen, and sons George and Charles.

For 21 years, Gayle Moore served as secretary for the San Pablo chapter of the Eagles. In June, she retired from that position and, at the same time, ended a one-year stint as the group's "California State Madam Secretary." Sandy Gonzales, 59, of Richmond, current secretary for the Eagles chapter in San Pablo, said Delbert Moore was a member of the Richmond Rod and Gun Club who taught her to shoot rifles.

Gayle Moore was a "wonderful, warm-hearted, loving person," Gonzales said.

The fire district staffs 30 fire stations, serving nine cities and the unincorporated areas of Contra Costa County, totaling about 600,000 people. About 45 of the district's 300 firefighters responded to today's blaze, as well as units from the Pinole and Richmond fire departments.

The firefighters' deaths came less than a month after Richmond Deputy Fire Marshal Ron Wiley died after crashing on the Carquinez Bridge.