Fire destroys inside of Santa Rosa home

Fire gutted a home in the 500 block of Alderbrook Drive in Santa Rosa early Saturday after one of the residents dropped smoking materials on a mattress in the living room, the Santa Rosa Fire Department said.

Two men who were in the home when the fire was called in at 1:26 a.m. made it out safely before firefighters arrived, and one of them acknowledged the cause, Battalion Chief Mike Jones said in a press release.

The men attempted to put out the fire and went back inside the home before calling 911, a delay that allowed the fire to “grow out of control,” Jones said. When emergency crews arrived, heavy fire was visible from the front of the one-story residence and the home next door was threatened, he said.

Crews working inside and outside and on the roof of the house brought the blaze under control in 20 minutes.

The interior of the home was destroyed by flames, heat and smoke, Jones said, estimating the damage at $100,000 to the structure and $20,000 to the contents.

Three fire engines and a ladder truck responded.