Selma mobile home fire kills elderly resident, two dogs

Flames tore through a mobile home at McCall Village in Selma before neighbors could pull 77-year-old Refugio Ramirez to safety, killing him and his two dogs in a blaze that fire crews found fully involved when they arrived at 1701 E. Dinuba Ave.

The fire broke out around 10:30 a.m. Sunday, April 12, 2026, at the senior park near Dinuba Avenue and Clausen Drive. The Selma Fire Department said crews reached the scene to find the home engulfed, then stayed for hours to conduct overhaul operations and make sure the fire did not spread to nearby units.

Neighbors said Ramirez had difficulty getting around, a detail that made the loss hit even harder in a park built for older residents. People living nearby said the flames moved so quickly that there was no realistic chance to get him out in time. One neighbor behind the home tried to keep the fire from reaching his own property and attempted to help rescue Ramirez and the dogs, but could not get them out.

The damage went beyond the burned home. The mobile home was left heavily charred and barely intact, and two vehicles on the property were also badly burned, showing how fast a structure fire can spread through a mobile home lot once it takes hold.

McCall Village is a 55-plus senior community with 218 home sites, built in 1972, where one fast-moving fire can put close neighbors at risk within minutes. The cause remains under investigation by local officials, including the Fresno County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office. For Selma and greater Fresno County, the fire is a grim reminder that older residents, people with limited mobility, and households with pets face the greatest danger when a blaze starts inside a home and response time is measured in seconds, not minutes.