Crime & Safety

UPDATE: Woman Found Dead After Fire Identified

A 60-year-old woman was found dead Monday after an apparent fire in her apartment at Amanda Park, a senior complex in Murrieta, authorities said.

UPDATE 1:20 p.m. Nov. 22:

The Riverside County Sheriff/Coroner's Office today released the name of the woman found dead Monday after a fire in her Murrieta apartment.

Cheryl D. Perkins, 60, was positively identified as the victim.

Find out what's happening in Murrietawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The coroner's office said the case was still pending, and could give no information on the cause of the death.

ORIGINAL POST:

Find out what's happening in Murrietawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

A 60-year-old woman was found dead in her apartment Monday, apparently after a fire broke out, authorities said.

Murrieta police Sgt. Don Weller said officers were called at about 4:52 p.m. to the Amanda Park senior apartment complex, 24425 Skyview Ridge Drive.

The Murrieta Fire Department had responded shortly after 4:45 p.m. when they received a call for medical aid, according to Murrieta fire Battalion Chief Steve Kean.

"The arriving engine company found that there had been an undiscovered fire within the house, possibly at 8 a.m.," Kean told Patch. "The fire went undetected; it self-extinguished."

One of the woman's family members told authorites they'd come to the apartment and found her unresponsive, Kean said, at which time they called authorities.

The woman's identity was not released.

Kean, who is investigating the fire, said the cause appears to be accidental based on preliminary information.

"There doesn't appear to be anything suspicious," Kean said, adding that furniture and other items inside the home were damaged, estimating the damage to be about $60,000 worth.

No other units were damaged by the fire, he said, and he was not yet sure whether a smoke alarm went off.

The Riverside County Sheriff/Coroner's Office was also called to the scene, Weller said.

The sergeant said all three agencies--police, fire and coroner--were still looking into the circumstances surrounding the death.

The coroner's report can take weeks, he said.


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