On Saturday, August 15, 2009 at 7:00 PM, 17 Companies of Los Angeles Firefighters, 4 LAFD Rescue Ambulances, 1 Arson Unit, 2 Urban Search and Rescue Units, 1 Rehab Unit, 1 Hazardous Materials Team, 2 EMS Battalion Captains, 3 Heavy Equipment Operators, 5 Battalion Chief Officer Command Teams and 1 Division Chief Officer Command Team, a total of 122 Los Angeles Firefighters under the direction of Assistant Chief Richard Warford, responded to a Major Emergency Structure Fire at 1820 South Grand Avenue in the Washington Boulevard Corridor south of the Fashion District near downtown Los Angeles.

Firefighters arrived quickly to find smoke showing from a pre-1933 two-story industrial building. Forcing entry through rolling steel doors of the unreinforced masonry structure, firefighters encountered heavy fire throughout the interior of the 6,250 square-foot non-fire sprinklered building.

With flammable baled and boxed textiles stored as high as ten feet - and burning across the warehouse, firefighters boldly attacked the flames with handlines, sparing three offices on the second floor and preventing the intense fire from spreading to a movie rental business to the north.

The blaze was extinguished in just 23 minutes.

During emergency operations that included breaching and removing sections of the burning roof with hand tools, one Los Angeles Firefighter sustained a significant but non-life threatening facial laceration. He was taken to California Hospital Medical Center for emergency wound care, before being released to remain off-duty.

No other injuries were reported.

With tons of smoldering textiles remaining within the confines of the 82 year-old building, Firefighter/Specialists certified in heavy equipment operation brought LAFD tractors to the scene to assist in the painstaking overhaul and complete extinguishment of debris, an effort that took nearly 11 hours.

Preliminary loss to "West Coast Jobbers, Inc.", a textile and clothing firm, has been estimated at $250,000 ($200,000 structure & $50,000 contents).

The cause of this fire remains under investigation.


(photos)

Submitted by Brian Humphrey, Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department