A three-alarm fire, which was called in at 8:46 a.m. on July 11, took the life of Delilah Rose Dominguez and destroyed eight units in the Almaden Terrace Apartments.

The apartments are located at 2118 Canoas Garden Ave., near Almaden and Malone roads, which is on the eastern boundary of Willow Glen.

"Our firefighters did an outstanding job," Cabral said. "It was their quick action on the roof that kept the whole building from being consumed."

Cabral expressed concern over the media's claims that fireworks were the culprit, saying that "there was firework debris all over the complex. There were fireworks found in the apartment, but we're looking at many causes, including garbage and appliances."

She also said there was no confirmation that the fire was linked to the fireworks found in Dominguez's apartment. And Cabral did not know if Dominguez was alone in the apartment when the fire began.

Willow Glen Fire Station No. 6. was the first unit on the scene, but it took approximately 60 firefighters to bring the fire under control. The fire damaged eight apartments in the 262-unit complex. Four upstairs apartments were burned and four downstairs units had severe water damage, displacing all its tenants.

The eight families affected by the fire all received temporary housing, food and clothing vouchers from the American Red Cross, according to American Red Cross Santa Clara Valley Public Relations Director Cynthia Shaw.

The one fatality, Dominguez, died from smoke inhalation and burns, according to the Santa Clara County coroner's office. She was identified through dental records

Richard Jimenez, a resident at Almaden Terraces who was not affected by the fire, said the complex was not in good shape.

"There are no sprinklers and the smoke alarms don't work," Jimenez said. "It's been bad. I'm getting out of here."

Several attempts were make to contact Neal Chandra, administrator for the Almaden Terrace Apartments, about whether the smoke alarms were working in the complex. But Chandra did not return any of the newspaper's phone calls.

Cabral said she did not know if Dominguez's apartment had a functioning smoke alarm, but said that landlords are required to provide them, but it is the occupants' responsibility to maintain them.

The apartment complex, which is more than 30 years old, was not required to install sprinklers when it was constructed.

Nineteen other units in the complex also had to have their power shut off, but those renters were moved into empty units within the complex, Shaw said.

The fire was contained within an hour and declared under control at 10:28 am.