A fire ripped across the roof of an enormous warehouse in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday, spreading rapidly over the building’s solar panels and releasing heavy plumes of smoke and ammonia gas into the surrounding area.
The fire broke out at approximately 2:30 p.m. local time (2130 GMT) at a 500,000-square-foot Lineage company warehouse located in the city’s historic Boyle Heights neighborhood. Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Jaime Moore said the flames breached a pressurized ammonia line but were largely confined to the roof of the structure.
Everyone inside the burning building and neighboring structures was safely evacuated. Chief Moore confirmed that no injuries were reported as a result of the fire.
Firefighters who had initially climbed the building and entered the facility were ordered to pull back after the ammonia line was breached. Moore told reporters that ground crews also struggled to reach the burning rooftop using water streams from below.
In an uncommon decision, fire commanders brought in water-dropping helicopters, which made multiple aerial passes over the blaze and ultimately brought the fire under control, according to Moore.
The warehouse sits next to a major downtown freeway. Local authorities responded by issuing a shelter-in-place order, directing residents of nearby homes to remain indoors with their windows and doors shut and air conditioning turned off to reduce the risk of exposure to smoke and ammonia fumes.
Chief Moore noted that the smoke and ammonia gas were not considered dangerous to most people “unless they have respiratory issues or in direct contact with it.” He added that air quality monitoring downwind of the fire and checks on water runoff indicated no serious threat to the surrounding communities.
