A large fire broke out at a business in the Harbor Gateway area of Los Angeles late Saturday, drawing a heavy firefighting response and pushing a thick plume of black smoke into the night sky.
The fire was reported at around 9:50 p.m. at a commercial building on the 14000 block of South Figueroa Street, near the 110 Freeway, ABC7 Los Angeles reported. Firefighters arrived to find the structure heavily involved, with flames and dark smoke visible from a distance.
A defensive fight
Because of the size and intensity of the fire, Los Angeles Fire Department crews fought it defensively, working from outside and from adjacent rooftops rather than going in, according to ABC7. More than 60 firefighters were assigned to the incident. The department said the flames were kept from spreading to neighboring buildings and were confined to the single structure.
The dense black smoke, the kind produced when a fire burns through industrial materials, was visible across the surrounding area and prompted the usual advice to nearby residents to stay indoors and keep windows closed while it lingered.
No injuries reported
No injuries were reported in connection with the fire, the Fire Department said. It was not immediately clear what type of business occupied the building, whether anyone was inside when the fire started, or what caused it. Investigators had not determined a cause as of early Sunday.
The fire capped a busy Fourth of July for Los Angeles firefighters, who typically see a rise in calls over the holiday from fireworks and the summer fire season. In this case, the most important number was the simplest one: no one was hurt.
