On Sunday, August 30th, 2009 at 8:29 AM, 15 Companies of Los Angeles Firefighters, 4 LAFD Rescue Ambulances, 1 Urban Search and Rescue Unit, 1 Hazardous Materials Team, 1 Helicopter, 2 EMS Battalion Captains, 3 Battalion Chief Officer Command Teams, 1 Division Chief Officer Command Team, under the direction of Battalion Chief John Drake responded to a Major Emergency Structure Fire at 1800 N. Camino Palmero, in West Hollywood Hills.

Firefighters arrived to find a large three story single family dwelling with heavy smoke and fire showing from one room on the second floor. Fire crews quickly commenced the deployment of handlines, but met the difficult task of forcible entry into the structure. Interior fire attack teams worked diligently to find the source of the flames, while roof operation teams cut several holes attempting to locate the origin of the fire.

It took firefighters several minutes to find the main fire, with only thick heavy pressurized smoke visible. As crews continued to work exhaustibly, the fire had spread rapidly through the walls as well as into the attic of the large home.Due to the angle of the fire, water had to be supplied to the roof team to begin extinguishing the bulk of the flames.

Several firefighters working in and on top the structure were forced rotate their operations, for rest and rehabilitation, due to high rigorous demand. It took 103 firefighters just over two hours to knocked down the blaze.

One Fire Captain suffered a minor burn to one hand, along with two firefighters who suffered from heat exhaustion, all three were treated and released at the hospital and are expected to recover. The dollar loss is $3,000,000 ($1,500,000 for structure and $1,500,000 for contents). The cause of the blaze is still under investigation.

Submitted by Devin Gales,Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department