Lily Shirazian's family-owned clothing store was destroyed in an early Sunday blaze in the Fashion District of Los Angeles.
Shirazian and her husband owned Top 2 Toe, at 1023 Maple Avenue, for six years. Now they'll have to pick up the pieces along with the owners of three other businesses that burned for two hours after 2 a.m.
"Everything is gone. Everything we own … it’s gone,” she said shortly after arriving to the shop on Sunday morning. “We put everything in this store.
"We built our life in this store."
A city firefighter suffered a significant cut to his arm while fighting the blaze. LA Fire Department Capt. Selwyn Lloyd said glass fell from shelvings and went through the firefighter's turnout coat.
The firefighter was taken to County-USC Medical Center, where he was listed in fair condition.
The glass cut through to the bone, Lloyd said.
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The fire started in the southern portion of the building at 1025 S. Maple Ave.
The single-story structure, at the corner of Santee Alley at Maple Avenue, is at the heart of Los Angeles' Fashion District, a famous manufacturing, distribution and wholesale shopping area southeast of downtown.
Within a few minutes of firefighters arriving, flames were seen shooting through the roof of the building.
By about 2:30 a.m., firefighters had gotten off the roof and out of the building and were in a defensive posture, pouring on water from the outside.
Of the four clothing and shoe businesses that burned, two units on the south side of the structure sustained the most damage.
“Fortunately, a division wall separated the other two units, minimizing damage to the north side of the concrete tilt-up structure,” according to a Los Angeles Fire Department Incident Report.
Firefighters declared the fire out at 3:40 a.m., according to Erik Scott of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
How the fire started was not immediately known, but officials believe it started in Shirazian’s business.
City News Service contributed to this report.
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