A grandmother and her teenage grandchild were hospitalized for smoke inhalation Monday after a house fire in the Compton area that also killed two dogs, authorities said.
The fire was reported at 12:45 a.m. in the 16000 block of Essey Avenue, said Los Angeles County Fire Department Dispatch Supervisor Miguel Ornelas. Firefighters on the scene described heavy smoke and fire, Ornelas said.
Firefighters say flames never reached the bedrooms of 63-year-old Lydia Razo or 17-year-old Alex Razo, but thick, heavy smoke did. When they were pulled from their home, neither had a pulse.
Alex Razo, a transgender male, is a member of the Dominguez High School drum line and is just a few months away from graduating. His brother has not ruled out the possibility that the fire was intentionally set.
"They said it wasn't electrical and it wasn't gas," said Andrew Razo, adding that doctors told him his brother might not make it. "Whoever intentionally did this, turn yourself in. Do you think it was intentional? It had to be, I don't know, my mind is everywhere right now."
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Arson and Bomb Detail is investigating the cause of the fire, but at this point they have not deemed it suspicious.
The Compton Unified School District is offering counseling to both the Razo family and any classmates who may need it.
