An unidentified Mexican national who was staying with a friend died early Wednesday when flames that may have been ignited by a smoldering cigarette engulfed a second-floor Glendale apartment, authorities said.
The victim, whose name will not be released until family members are notified, was watching television in the living room shortly before 4 a.m. when the fire began in the bedroom of the apartment in the 1400 block of East Maple Street, said Officer Rodney Brooks of the Glendale Police Department. The victim and his friend, who had been asleep, tried twice to douse the flames with buckets of water before the friend decided to flee.
