Fatality Fire in Koreatown
Monday, January 1, 2018
LAFD Spokesperson: Margaret Stewart
Fatality fire at Koreatown senior living apartment building
Photo Credits:
Creative Commons Licensed For Your Use: LAFD Photo | Eric FrenchLos Angeles-
A late night kitchen fire took the life of a 74 year old man in Koreatown.
At 10:48PM the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a reported structure fire at 616 S Normandie Av in the Koreatown section of Los Angeles.
Firefighters arrived to find a 16 story, senior-living, apartment building with no visible fire. As crews made their way into the building to investigate, they located a fire in one unit on the 3rd floor.
With fire attack underway, firefighters searched for any occupants and located the elderly resident. He was immediately taken outside and to a waiting ambulance.
Sadly, the man was beyond medical help. LA County Coroner responded to the scene to assume responsibility for the death investigation and will provide official cause of death.
The 155,446 square foot building, built in 1969, was undergoing a sprinkler retro-fit and the sprinkler inside the unit was not activated. At least one smoke alarm was present and sounding when firefighters entered the unit.
LAFD Arson and Counter-Terrorism Section are actively investigating the cause of the fire.
