BRIEFLY IN THE NEWS Home suffers major...

BRIEFLY IN

THE NEWS

Home suffers major fire damage

A two-alarm fire early Tuesday morning charred the upper floor of

a two-story Newport Shores home causing about $130,000 in damages,

officials said. No one was hurt in the incident.

Firefighters responded to the call in the 200 block of Walnut

Street after a neighbor, an off-duty U.S. Forest Service firefighter,

called 911, said Donna Boston, spokeswoman for the Newport Beach Fire

Department.

“The call escalated to two-alarm because the fire was threatening

homes nearby,” she said.

The blaze shattered windows and destroyed the second floor of the

home leaving gutted piles of charcoal, Boston said.

Firefighters responded quickly and put out the fire in about half

an hour, she said. She said the fire was powerful enough to melt

mini-blinds and curtains in an adjacent home.

“The fire didn’t spread thanks to the neighbor who called it in

quickly,” she said.

The family did not request assistance from the Red Cross for

relocation, Boston said.

Twenty-eight firefighters from Newport Beach and Costa Mesa

responded with six engines, two trucks, a paramedic unit and two

battalion chiefs. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Police searching for shooting culprit

Costa Mesa Police are looking for a man who may have negligently

fired his gun in the middle of a street in the city’s Westside,

officials said.

Police found four shell casings in the 900 block of West 18th

Street at about 11:53 a.m. after residents complained that they heard

shots fired and a vehicle speed away, Sgt. Bob Ciszek said.

“No one was hurt, but there was ricochet damage to a parked car,”

he said.

Ciszek said the suspect vehicle is described as a full-size pickup

truck with a bald man in the passenger seat. He said it is not known

if the incident is gang-related.

Suspect arrested in alleged carjacking

Costa Mesa Police on Saturday arrested a 23-year-old Orange man on

suspicion of carjacking after he allegedly accosted the victim with a

shotgun and took his car, officials said.

Ricky Joseph Cooper approached the victim at about 5:30 a.m. in

the 2100 block of College Avenue, Sgt. Bob Ciszek said.

Cooper pulled up behind the victim in a black Chevy sport utility

vehicle, got out of his car and pointed a shotgun at the victim, he

said. Cooper then took the victim’s maroon Buick and drove away,

Ciszek said.

Costa Mesa Police officers spotted the car traveling northbound on

the Costa Mesa Freeway and followed the car to Orange, he said.

“They stopped the vehicle near Chapman Avenue and took [Cooper]

into custody without incident,” Ciszek said.

Police also believe that another man may be involved in the

incident, he said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Costa Mesa Police at

(714) 754-5281.