The motel, prior to the fire.
APRIL 2, 2015
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
One man was killed and at least 15 others, including a
child, suffered injuries Thursday morning after a fire ripped through a two-story
Wilmington motel, forcing multiple people trapped in their rooms to jump out
windows to escape the intense flames.
The “major emergency” fire broke out at the Wilmington Motel
located at 111 E. C St. (map) shortly before 3:15 a.m. and burned for nearly an
hour before crews were able to knock it down, according to the Los Angeles Fire
Department.
Residents described a chaotic scene when the fire erupted,
including multiple people jumping from windows to get out of the 20-unit
building.
“People were just jumping out of their windows and screaming
and yelling,” said a female resident named Diana.
Although LAFD reported that the building’s smoke alarms were
working at the time, some residents said they didn’t hear the warning system.
One resident, who identified himself as Rodney, did not hear
the alarm but went to his door after hearing a commotion in the hallway that he
said sounded like people fighting.
Rodney only realized the building was on fire after he
smelled something burning, opened his front door and saw the hallway filled
with thick smoke.
It took fire crews nearly an hour to knock down a fire that
burned through a Wilmington motel on April 2, 2015.
Another resident, Manuel, said he heard the alarm but initially
though it was his refrigerator. He said he ran out of his room after people
banged on his door.
“After that, as we came out, there were people jumping out
of the windows. They asked us to catch a little girl so we caught a little girl
that was jumping out of the window. They dropped her down to us,” Manuel said.
He added that the girl’s grandmother then jumped and they
caught her too, but she broke her ankle in the fall. Another man made it out
from the window on his own, Manuel added.
Some residents complained it took firefighters too long to
get to the motel.
“It took them an hour to get here,” Rodney said.
Diana also expressed frustration over their response.
“It took them a long time, and even when they got here they
were just standing out in the front … it was getting really bad,” she said.
But according to LAFD Deputy Chief Daren Palacios,
firefighters responded to the scene exactly three minutes after dispatchers
received a 911 call reporting the blaze.
A small natural gas explosion was caught on camera after the
fire was extinguished. No one was injured in the explosion. Explosions happen all the time after a fire starts, from natural gas to gas-filled cylinders, propane tanks, oxygen tanks, and so on.
Crews were then hindered in their efforts to fight the
flames by several obstacles, including a fence that became electrified by a
live wire and bars on the windows of the lower units that had to be cut off
with chainsaws, Palacios said.
It took 100 firefighters a total of 50 minutes to extinguish
the blaze, according to LAFD.
As of 5:30 a.m., LAFD had reported one fatality. The victim
was identified an adult male, but his name has yet to be released.
Initially, but fire officials reported 10 people had been
injured, but by 6 a.m., that number had increased to at least 15.
Nine of the injures were considered minor and ranged from
burns to broken bones to smoke inhalation, while two of the injuries were
serious.
The conditions of the other four people was not immediately
known.
All of the victims have been transported to area hospitals.
The displaced residents were being assisted by LAFD, Red
Council and Los Angeles City Councilman Joe Buscaino.
Arson investigators were working to determine the cause of
the fire, which remained unknown Thursday morning.
Source: ktla.com