Fire causes $250,000 in damage

Authorities believe a fire that started underneath a 1976 Rolls Royce is responsible for a blaze that caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage and scorched two cars Monday in Newport Beach.

Officials said just after 8 a.m. Monday a fire broke out in a Torrey Pines Road home in Newport Beach’s Big Canyon community. The first firefighters to arrive found a garage engulfed in flames and spreading to the house and a neighbor’s home, officials said.

The homeowner had recently had some work done on the Rolls Royce, said Fire Department spokeswoman Jennifer Schulz.

The owner turned on the car and left it idling in his garage for about 10 minutes and when he returned found it on fire, she said.

Firefighters requested more assistance and attacked the blaze from inside and outside the home.

The group of more than 40 firefighters from Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Santa Ana and the Orange County Fire Authority kept the flames from spreading to adjacent homes, but reported extensive smoke and fire damage to the home’s garage, attic and den.

Officials estimated the home suffered about $250,000 in damage and an additional $100,000 loss to items inside the house.

Two cars were destroyed and a third, parked in the driveway, suffered damage as well, officials said.

The homeowner suffered minor injuries.