Paul Torres Surgery couldn’t save the eye of Camarillo firefighter Paul Torres, who was hit with shrapnel as he fought to extinguish a blaze that destroyed a Thousand Oaks home.

Torres thanked the many people who sent him cards of encouragement and prayed on his behalf.

“There has been an incredible amount of support from my family and the department—throughout the nation and the community— that’s been extremely helpful in keeping me motivated and getting me through these hard times,” Torres said.

He’s grateful, he said, for the “neverending care and prayers.”

The eight-year fire department veteran sustained an injury to his eye while fighting an April 5 house fire in the 1900 block of Laurelwood Court in Thousand Oaks that began when a toaster ignited a paper towel. The smoldering paper towel was accidentally put into the trash. The trash fire spread to the house.

“It was pretty much a standard structure response,” the firefighter said.

Torres recalled being in the backyard of the home wearing his full firefighting gear— jacket, pants, boots and helmet—when something from inside the house began exploding. That’s when a piece of shrapnel hit him in the eye.

He was taken to Los Robles Hospital and Medical Center before being flown by helicopter to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, where he underwent five hours of surgery to save his eye.

“They did the best they could, but the damage was too severe,” he said.

Torres will need additional eye surgery from a Santa Barbara plastic surgeon, who will replace the damaged eye with a prosthetic. Once the device is implanted, it will have the mobility to move like his other eye.

An artist is creating the new eye to match the blue-gray-hazel color of his eyes.

“There was a large amount of ammunition going off. The prime suspect is shrapnel from a bullet,” Torres said.

The fire department is still investigating. The shrapnel taken from his eye will be tested to determine its origin, he said. Aerosol cans and a propane tank were also exploding.

Torres is hoping to return to work as a firefighter when the healing process is complete. He expects to be rehabilitating for four to six weeks, he said.

“I hope to be back at work in two to three months. That would be ideal.”