NEWPORT BEACH - A man died Wednesday after a fire swept his studio apartment on Balboa Boulevard.
The fire, apparently ignited by a candle, was reported burning about 6:45 a.m. in his second-floor apartment near Balboa and 22nd Street, fire officials said.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officials did not release his name, but other residents said he was William Rockwood.
Said to be in his 60s, Rockwood lived in an apartment above Original Pizza.
Restaurant owner Steve Kalatschan said Rockwood had a key to the eatery and stopped by at 6 a.m. each day for the past several years to fire up the pizza ovens, allowing employees to sleep in. Rockwood could often be found at a local watering hole watching pool players and sipping Bud Light with an olive - "a poor man's martini," said neighbor Bob Norman.
"He was a nice guy and never caused any problems to anybody," Kalatschan said. "It's a shame, it really is."
The blaze was contained to the apartment, and no other residents were injured.
It took 26 firefighters to quell the flames. Damage was estimated at $50,000.
Newport Beach Lifeguard Lt. Mike Halphide was one of the first to arrive and was credited by firefighters with alerting apartment residents to evacuate.
By JOHN McDONALD and JEFF OVERLEY / The Orange County Register
The fire, apparently ignited by a candle, was reported burning about 6:45 a.m. in his second-floor apartment near Balboa and 22nd Street, fire officials said.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officials did not release his name, but other residents said he was William Rockwood.
Said to be in his 60s, Rockwood lived in an apartment above Original Pizza.
Restaurant owner Steve Kalatschan said Rockwood had a key to the eatery and stopped by at 6 a.m. each day for the past several years to fire up the pizza ovens, allowing employees to sleep in. Rockwood could often be found at a local watering hole watching pool players and sipping Bud Light with an olive - "a poor man's martini," said neighbor Bob Norman.
"He was a nice guy and never caused any problems to anybody," Kalatschan said. "It's a shame, it really is."
The blaze was contained to the apartment, and no other residents were injured.
It took 26 firefighters to quell the flames. Damage was estimated at $50,000.
Newport Beach Lifeguard Lt. Mike Halphide was one of the first to arrive and was credited by firefighters with alerting apartment residents to evacuate.
By JOHN McDONALD and JEFF OVERLEY / The Orange County Register
NEWPORT BEACH - A man died Wednesday after a fire swept his studio apartment on Balboa Boulevard.
The fire, apparently ignited by a candle, was reported burning about 6:45 a.m. in his second-floor apartment near Balboa and 22nd Street, fire officials said.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officials did not release his name, but other residents said he was William Rockwood.
Said to be in his 60s, Rockwood lived in an apartment above Original Pizza.
Restaurant owner Steve Kalatschan said Rockwood had a key to the eatery and stopped by at 6 a.m. each day for the past several years to fire up the pizza ovens, allowing employees to sleep in. Rockwood could often be found at a local watering hole watching pool players and sipping Bud Light with an olive - "a poor man's martini," said neighbor Bob Norman.
"He was a nice guy and never caused any problems to anybody," Kalatschan said. "It's a shame, it really is."
The blaze was contained to the apartment, and no other residents were injured.
It took 26 firefighters to quell the flames. Damage was estimated at $50,000.
Newport Beach Lifeguard Lt. Mike Halphide was one of the first to arrive and was credited by firefighters with alerting apartment residents to evacuate.
By JOHN McDONALD and JEFF OVERLEY / The Orange County Register
The fire, apparently ignited by a candle, was reported burning about 6:45 a.m. in his second-floor apartment near Balboa and 22nd Street, fire officials said.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officials did not release his name, but other residents said he was William Rockwood.
Said to be in his 60s, Rockwood lived in an apartment above Original Pizza.
Restaurant owner Steve Kalatschan said Rockwood had a key to the eatery and stopped by at 6 a.m. each day for the past several years to fire up the pizza ovens, allowing employees to sleep in. Rockwood could often be found at a local watering hole watching pool players and sipping Bud Light with an olive - "a poor man's martini," said neighbor Bob Norman.
"He was a nice guy and never caused any problems to anybody," Kalatschan said. "It's a shame, it really is."
The blaze was contained to the apartment, and no other residents were injured.
It took 26 firefighters to quell the flames. Damage was estimated at $50,000.
Newport Beach Lifeguard Lt. Mike Halphide was one of the first to arrive and was credited by firefighters with alerting apartment residents to evacuate.
By JOHN McDONALD and JEFF OVERLEY / The Orange County Register
Family Members
Parents
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Advertisement
