SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio fire investigators are focusing on the area of a home near an indoor wood-burning stove as the source of a deadly fire.
The fire broke out after 11 p.m. Monday at the corner of South San Dario Avenue and San Fernando Street.
Fire crews at the scene said dispatchers received a call from a woman who said that she was inside the home hiding in a closet.
The woman said she believed her husband was also inside the home, possibly in another room.
Both people were taken to a hospital where they were later pronounced dead.
Staff at the Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the woman as Guillermina Pinelo-Hinojosa, 75.
On Tuesday night, the ME’s office later identified the man to KSAT as Juan Manuel Hinojosa, who was also 75 years old. Hinojosa, whose death was ruled an accident, died of smoke inhalation and thermal injuries, the medical examiner’s office said.
According to fire crews at the scene, they had to cut through a metal gate and metal burglar bars on the home’s doors and windows in order to reach the couple inside.
“They put this because they were getting vandalized,” said George Valdez, a family friend, as he pointed to the metal bars. “(People) were stealing from them, and they put this big fence here.”
Valdez showed up at the home Tuesday morning and still could not fully comprehend what had happened.
He described the couple as loving people who were dedicated to their church.
“I really am speechless,” Valdez said. “I don’t know what to say.”
Joseph Arrington, a San Antonio Fire Department spokesperson, said the scenario that fire crews faced with the burglar bars at the couple’s home is one they regularly train for.
“One crew that is on the fire will be assigned to what we call ‘soften the structure.’ They’ll go in and remove those burglar bars,” Arrington said. “Most of them are bolted into the structure itself, so we have to go through it and remove them.”
In this case, it appeared that firefighters used a tool to cut through a lock and the fence bars.
“Obviously, you know, people need to feel secure in their homes and take whatever safety measures they need to protect themselves,” Arrington said. “Unfortunately, it is a hindrance that can slow us down.”
Arrington said that he had no indication that the time it took fire crews to cut through the gate and burglar bars was what led to the couple’s deaths.
He said it appears the wood-burning stove may have played a role in causing the fire.
Whatever the cause, the damage to the home and to a truck in a carport was extensive.
As Valdez took in the grim images, he also thought about safety and security at his own home.
“I don’t have any bars, and seeing this?” Valdez said. “Forget it.”
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