More than 250 firefighters fought a downtown blaze that was sparked at a block-long construction site around 1:20 a.m., Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas said. Flames consumed the 7-story wood-framed structure and damaged two adjacent high-rises before being brought under control within 90 minutes.
“The radiant heat was strong enough to burst windows in one building next door,” Battalion Chief Joseph Castro said.
Three floors of that adjacent building were damaged by fire and several other floors sustained water damage. The building, which houses city offices, was closed for the day.
Embers spewed from the fire landed across a freeway, igniting brush and charring a traffic sign. But fortunately winds were light and did not blow the fire even farther.
Portions of U.S. Route 101 and Interstate 110 were shut down for a time over fears that debris might fall into lanes. The northbound 110 remained closed after sunrise, as commuter traffic backed up for miles.