‘I have nothing’: More than 20 families displaced after apartment fire in Dinuba

DINUBA, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – More than 20 families are displaced after a fire broke out in an apartment building overnight, with businesses down below.

The fire broke out just after midnight. The Dinuba Fire Department worked overnight and throughout Monday morning to put out the fire. 

Six tenants were extracted from the second floor and others were treated for smoke inhalation.

“I never thought anything like that would happen,” said Krista Dutcher, who lost her apartment to the fire after living there for eight years.

Dutcher captured videos of the flames and black smoke as it filled the units.

She said it was difficult to breathe and see. 

Some tenants grabbed whatever they could, while others stayed behind trying to put out the fire with extinguishers.

As for Dutcher, she just ran out as fast as she could.

“Everything in my apartment is gone, I have nothing, the only thing I have is the clothes I have on and my cell phone,” she said.

With temperatures dipping into the 30s, Bakery Owner Josefina Ibarra opened her doors to help residents escape the cold.

“When I saw people outside, I saw it was cold, and I invited them over here and I gave them bread and coffee, and they were here for a while, the last couple left around 6 a.m.,” said Ibarra, who owns Delicias De Familia Pasteleria.

“Crammed in there like sardines, freezing,” Dutcher said.

The several businesses below suffered from water and smoke damage.

“The bike shop took a really big hit with the water as they were directly underneath the area of the fire,” said Battalion Chief Joanne Bear of the Dinuba City Fire Department.  

While no one was seriously injured, a firefighter was treated for exhaustion but is expected to be okay.

“We’re very fortunate, this is an older building, it’s historic here in Dinuba, but with the amount of people that time of the morning, you know, neighbors alerting neighbors, any kind of smoke detection going off was a big assistance and getting those people out,” Bear said.

The American Red Cross financially assisted 17 families, along with assigning them a caseworker for support.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.