Pico-Union House Fire Claims One Life
Tuesday, January 9, 2018
LAFD Spokesperson: Brian Humphrey
Fatality fire in Pico-Union was quickly deemed "suspicious".
Photo Credits:
Creative Commons Licensed For Your Use: LAFD Photo | Erik ScottPICO-UNION-
A fire in a two story residential triplex appears to have claimed the life of one person early Wednesday morning.
The Los Angeles Fire Department was summoned at 3:16 AM on January 10, 2018 to 1721 South New Hampshire Avenue in the Pico-Union area, where firefighters arrived quickly to find heavy smoke and flames showing from the second floor of a two story residential triplex.
Sixty firefighters under the command of Battalion Chief Timothy Kelly fought their way through thick smoke to battle the inferno, soon discovering the remains of one person beyond medical help inside the burning residence. No other injuries were reported.
The blaze was confined to the unit of fire origin and large attic above, and fully extinguished in just 48 minutes.
Though one or more smoke alarms were present in the heavily damaged upstairs unit, their functional status at the time of the blaze could not be immediately determined. No obvious factors were noted that could impede the emergency egress of occupants from the 2,149 square-foot premises. The 116 year-old structure was not equipped with optional residential fire sprinklers.
A positive identification of the deceased person, as well as the cause, time and manner their death will be determined by the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner.
UPDATE: Los Angeles Police officials formally declared on January 16, 2018, that the blaze was the focus of an arson/homicide investigation with a suspect in custody.
Dispatched Units: E226 T26 RA826 RA26 E215 E15 T15 E10 E21 SQ21 BC5 BC1 RA15 T94 E294 E2 CM42 EM11 BC18 CM22 E13 AR1 PI1 PH1
