Fire clerk helps from hospital

When Andrea Talbott walked into her room at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian, she looked at the view and wondered, “What would I do if I saw a fire here?”

Though she was about to give birth to her newest daughter, Talbott can be forgiven for still having fire on the mind — she’s a clerical worker for the Newport Beach Fire Department.

“This is a great view of Newport and Costa Mesa,” Talbott said of her room, which faces Hospital Road and Placentia Avenue. “If there was a fire I could definitely see it from here.”

Talbott was right. As she sat down to feed her newborn girl Thursday morning, she saw a plume of black smoke rising from somewhere in the city.

A fire in the Sea Cliff Mobile Home Park had Talbott dialing 9-1-1 to alert her coworkers.

“They said they already knew about it. They told me I could have the day off,” Talbott said, laughing.

The mobile home fire was started accidentally when a resident lighted a candle in her bedroom after she noticed the light wasn’t working, fire officials said. When she stepped out of the room, the candle ignited some nearby items.

All five residents escaped safely but the home was heavily damaged, fire department spokeswoman Jennifer Schulz said. Officials estimate there was about $80,000 worth of damage done to the house and to items inside.

No one was injured and no other homes were damaged, officials said.

As for Talbott and her daughter, they’re fine. Emily Talbott was born at 6:18 p.m. Wednesday, was 20-inches tall and weighed 7.7 pounds, Talbott said.

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at [email protected].