FIREFIGHTERS battle a blaze in Santa Ana (OCFA).

Four homes were damaged by fire Wednesday afternoon in Santa Ana.

According to the Orange County Fire Authority the blaze was in the 1000 block of West 2nd Street, and was reported before 12:50 p.m. The fire started outside the buildings and extended toward surrounding homes.

Firefighters managed to stop the fires before they did more extensive damage to the buildings. Thirteen children and 19 adults were displaced because of the blaze. One dog died.

There were no reported injuries and the cause is still undetermined. Fire investigators were deployed to the scene and assistance was provided by the Santa Ana Police Department and Southern California Red Cross.

Westminster School District invests in housing

The Westminster School District Board of Trustees voted last week to purchase two residential buildings in Los Angeles as an investment.

The vote was 4-0 with Trustee Jeremy Khalaf absent.

The district has an agreement with a developer for the former Franklin Elementary School site at 14422 Hammon Lane in Huntington Beach in exchange for “Exchange Funds” which will allow the district to buy other real estate.

The properties being considered for a “long term financial benefit” (primarily lease revenue) are:

• 1824 Thurman Ave., Los Angeles;
• 1307 North Orange Ave., Los Angeles.

The WSD is a K-8 district serving most of Westminster and portions of adjacent communities.