Site of fire (SBSD)
APPLE VALLEY — It began with a call to the fire department about a house fire at 11397 Saratoga Road. Responding firefighters noticed a main power line that had malfunctioned, falling to the ground onto shrubbery and igniting the fire.
For fear of further fires being caused inside the house, they entered the unoccupied home and discovered numerous marijuana plants.
Inside of grow house (SBSD)
Representatives from the SBSD came with a search warrant and, once inside, counted 750 marijuana plants. The grow required lights, air conditioning, fans, exhaust blowers, and an air-filtering system.
In addition, those running the grow stole electricity to run all of the equipment. The SBSD noted, “Suspects who grow marijuana illicitly will commonly bypass the electrical meter installed by the electrical company. This is done because of the high amount of electricity needed to support the marijuana growing equipment. ”
Such action creates a fire risk for the house as well as for its neighbors.
Electrical power to the residence has been cut off and the SBSD continues its investigation. Arrests are pending.
