A fire that destroyed a commercial building in Historic South-Central Los Angeles Thursday morning and spread to a second building was extinguished in about two hours and 40 minutes with no injuries reported.
Firefighters responded about 12:50 a.m. to the 3700 block of South Grand Avenue, near 38th Street, and found heavy fire coming from a one-story 100-foot-by-200-foot building, according to Margaret Stewart of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
About 1:15 a.m., Stewart said the fire had gone through the roof and, due to the "possible loss of structural integrity, this is transitioning to a defensive operation."
The flames spread to a nearby two-story, 50-foot-by-100-foot commercial building and caused significant damage, but a "closely coordinated operation" allowed crews to extinguish that fire and save a large portion of the building, Stewart said.
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The first building was declared a total loss, she said.
A total of 99 firefighters were assigned to the greater alarm incident, and a knockdown was called at about 3:30 a.m.
Department arson investigators were sent to the scene to try to determine the cause.
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High-voltage power lines and transformers in the area were arcing and caused a hazard to firefighters, Stewart said, adding Los Angeles Department of Water and Power crews on scene addressed that issue.
