LAFD Battles Stubborn Fire in Vacant Westside Office

CARTHAY - A stubborn fire in vacant office space above a westside dry cleaner, brought more than a hundred firefighters to battle flames in the two story building early Thursday, in what proved to be a greater alarm blaze.

The Los Angeles Fire Department was summoned at 12:34 AM on January 31, 2013, to 1232 South La Cienega Boulevard, where they arrived quickly to discover heavy fire in a vacant upstairs office space.

Though the bulk of fire was soon extinguished, LAFD crews labored intensely with chainsaws and hoselines for nearly an hour, to gain access and fully extinguish natural gas-fed flames in deeply recessed floor and wall spaces. The well coordinated but labor intense effort confined the fire to the upstairs portion of the two-story 6,900 square foot building, which was not equipped with fire sprinklers.

The judicious use of water, combined with extensive salvage and protection efforts by many of the 117 Fire Department responders, severely limited damage to the downstairs business, Fame Cleaners.

The flames were fully extinguished in just 57 minutes, and no injuries were reported. Loss from the fire is estimated at $1,625,000 ($1,500,000 structure & $125,000 contents). The cause of the early morning blaze is undetermined.

Dispatched Units: E58 RA58 RA858 E292 T92 E43 E261 E61 T61 EM9 BC18 BC9 E59 E94 T94 E294 DC1 SQ21 BC11 RA92 E68 E229 T29 E29 E237 T37 EM11 T27 E227 E27 UR27 RA27 RA827 UR88 BC5 RA61 EM13 EA2 E37 E226 T26 AR2

Submitted by Brian Humphrey, Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department

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