APARTMENT FIRE BLAMED ON CIRCUIT : ARSON THEORY REJECTED IN EIGHT-UNIT BLAZE.

Byline: Laurence Darmiento Daily News Staff Writer

A fire that destroyed eight apartment units and was initially thought to be arson was blamed Thursday on a faulty light circuit.

Wednesday morning's blaze apparently started in a light fixture in the carport outside the Canyon Country Apartments, said Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Joe Romero.

``At the time we were investigating it, we thought it might be arson, but they have gone in and conducted a thorough investigation - they found evidence of an electrical problem,'' he said.

The light fixture simply may have overheated because of its age, igniting the wood ceiling. It is also possible a bird or another animal nested near the light and the materials caught fire, he said.

Arson was suspected because the fire, starting sometime after 3:30 a.m., moved quickly through the carport, destroying 13 cars, trucks and a boat and eventually damaging the apartments.

The total damage was being pegged Thursday at $800,000.

It now appears likely that the fire spread quickly simply because the carport was old and the wood dry, Romero said. Something also apparently dropped down from the ceiling, setting on fire a pickup truck and boat, further fueling the flames.

``From there, it was a big mushroom cloud in an enclosed space,'' he said. ``By the time we got there, tires and bumpers and all kinds of things were exploding.''

None of the tenants was injured in the fire, which was limited to a single 10-unit building in the 98-unit complex on Camp Plenty Road.

The American Red Cross was called in to assist the tenants, nearly all of whom have been moved to vacant apartments in other buildings at the complex, officials said.

The fire generated such heat that it damaged paint and melted taillights on vehicles in a carport 40 feet away.