A 78-year-old woman was pulled out of an apartment blaze in the Hyde Park section of South Los Angeles early Wednesday but suffered grave injuries and later died, authorities said.
The fire was reported at 1:05 a.m. in a first floor unit of a two-story building in the 7500 block of Crenshaw Boulevard and was knocked down in 18 minutes, according to Brian Humphrey of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
The woman was pulled out of the unit and taken to a hospital in grave condition, where she died Thursday morning, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department. She had not been identified around noon Thursday.
"When they brought her out her arms was burned, she pink and it's like she wasn't even here," said Anita Haywood, a neighbor who lived in the building. "They was trying to bring her back to life. It was terrifying."
Another woman, Jacqueline Jackson, spoke about what her neighbor was like.
"She had grandkids and everything," Jackson said. "She was a nice lady."
"For her to go like that, it's just senseless," Haywood said.
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The fire extended to the unit above, sending scared residents out of their units, but no other injuries were reported, Humphrey said.
Frank Vorish, who lives on the second floor of the building, went from watching television to rushing his family and their neighbor outside to safety.
"When we opened up the door, fire was everywhere," Vorish said. "Flames was everywhere, from downstairs.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation.
