Two people living in the wash between the 101 Freeway and The Oaks mall had to scramble for their lives when another homeless person doused them with a flammable liquid inside their tent and tried to light them on fire, police said.
“He opens the tent, throws a flammable liquid on the two inside, and then lights it,” Sgt. Tim Lohman said of the incident.
Both targets were able to escape serious injury by quickly getting out of the tent and rolling on the ground to put out the flames, police said Wednesday. Only one of the men showed visible signs of being burned; both refused medical care, Lohman said.
The attack set off a small fire near Lynn Road and the 101 around 4:25 p.m. Nov. 16 that was extinguished quickly by responding firefighters from Station 30 on W. Hillcrest Drive.