TWO APARTMENT BUILDINGS ON FIRE IN EAST HOLLYWOOD QUICKLY EXTINGUISHED
The LAFD quickly stopped an early morning major emergency fire despite heavy flames.
The Los Angeles Fire Department was notified at 6:04 a.m. on June 12, 2017, of a structure fire at 421 N. Heliotrope Drive. Crews arrived to find two three-story apartment buildings under construction fully involved with fire. The heavy heat and large flame lengths due to the exposed construction caused damage to a duplex home and separate occupied apartment building. One hundred and seven firefighters were able to aggressively stop the blaze from spreading and causing further damage, keeping the bulk of the fire to the buildings of origin. Flames were fully extinguished in just 42 minutes.
Volunteers from the American Red Cross were summoned to offer temporary assistance to twenty displaced residents from the damaged nearby structures.
Although the cause of the fire is under active investigation, LAFD Arson Investigators are considering this fire suspicious and incendiary.
One female firefighter was transported with minor injuries to a local hospital however no civilian injuries were reported.
Monetary loss from the blaze is still being tabulated.
UPDATE: 4:00 p.m. on June 12, 2017; Los Angeles resident 20 year old Benicio Garcia, who was previously detained by LAFD Arson Investigators, has been arrested and booked for the act of Arson (P.C. 451-C) and is being held on $75,000 bail. This incident remains under active investigation.
