WESTLAKE, LOS ANGELES (KABC) — Two Los Angeles City firefighters and one other person were hospitalized following a structure fire Saturday afternoon in the Westlake neighborhood.
The L.A. Fire Department says one of the firefighters was struck by a vehicle while working on scene. That firefighter and another man who was rescued from a burning home were taken to the hospital.
The fire broke out just before 1 p.m. in the 500 block of South Union Avenue. It quickly extended into a two-story apartment building, a single-family bungalow and an RV, the fire department said.
Approximately 60 LAFD firefighters battled the blaze at the height of the incident and crews were able to knockdown the fire at about 1:42 p.m.
After knockdown was declared, a second LAFD firefighter experienced a medical emergency and was also transported to the emergency room, the fire department said. Everyone taken to the hospital was reported in stable condition.
The fire left two residential units uninhabitable, displacing at least eight individuals. The American Red Cross is assisting those affected with temporary shelter.
“Everything is burned we lost everything,” Westlake resident Erika Tovilla told Eyewitness News. “Automatically we’re on the street – mean we don’t have anything.”
Tovilla had just arrived home from the doctor when she spotted the flames — her uncle desperately tried to escape.
“He was burned from his arm and he smoke a lot of smoke and they take him critical to the hospital.”
Tovilla said she hopes her uncle will heal.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
