FIRE DESTROYS BUILDING; NORTH HILLS BUSINESS HIT BY `STUBBORN' BLAZE.Byline: Lisa Van Proyen Daily News Staff Writer Hundreds of weary firefighters spent nearly four hours battling a blaze that injured a firefighter and left much of an automotive business in ruins Monday. ``It seemed like it just didn't want to go out. It was one of those stubborn fires,'' said Firefighter Ray Hoffman of the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Fire Department's Station 88 in Sherman Oaks, who was on the rooftop, where flames shot up about 40 feet into the air. Hoffman called the fire one of the toughest in his 17 years with the department. ``It was just a lot of fire and a lot of heat in the roof. It kept pushing us back,'' Hoffman said. One firefighter, identified as Jeff Rickey rick·ey n. pl. rick·eys A drink of soda water, lime or lemon juice, sugar, and usually gin. [Probably from the name Rickey.] Noun 1. , received a minor leg injury while battling the 10:41 p.m. blaze Sunday night Sunday Night, later named Michelob Presents Night Music, was an NBC late-night television show which aired for two seasons between 1988 and 1990 as a showcase for jazz and eclectic musical artists. that consumed a 250-foot-long, 30-foot-wide stretch of building at Autocessories Wholesale in the 8800 block of North Sepulveda Boulevard. Firefighters extinguished ex·tin·guish tr.v. ex·tin·guished, ex·tin·guish·ing, ex·tin·guish·es 1. To put out (a fire, for example); quench. 2. To put an end to (hopes, for example); destroy. See Synonyms at abolish. 3. the fire by 2:21 a.m. Monday, said Brian Humphrey, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), also known as the Los Angeles City Fire Department to distinguish it from the Los Angeles County Fire Department. It is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Los Angeles. . Two firefighters were knocked to the ground after opening up one of five large metal shipping containers engulfed in flames In Flames is a melodic death metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden founded in 1990. Along with Dark Tranquillity and At the Gates, they pioneered what is now known as melodic death metal. at the rear of the business, Humphrey said. After the container was opened, a back-draft effect - a smoky explosion - occurred because of the buildup of heat and gasses, forcing the two men to the ground, Humphrey said. They were not injured. Usually city firefighters average no more than an hour to extinguish Extinguish Retire or pay off debt. a commercial blaze of this size, but the combustible com·bus·ti·ble adj. Capable of igniting and burning. n. A substance that ignites and burns readily. materials stacked from the ceiling to the floor, including thousands of tires, complicated their battle, officials said. Some of the 225 responding firefighters from 40 engine companies also spent time breaking through several security features at the business, including an iron fence that took about five minutes to get through, Hoffman said. By that time, portions of the roof had collapsed. The spectacular blaze also briefly closed Sepulveda Boulevard, Humphrey said. After the aggressive fire, 10 of the business' service bays, the main sales office and the showroom filled with wheels, batteries and other car accessories were left in ruins. Some auto parts Auto parts are components of automobiles. They mainly are, in alphabetic order (only car specific articles or articles with car section):
``I'm still in a state of shock, but we'll figure out a way to get back up. We will come back,'' said Stan Alexander, the business owner, who also lost his 1915 Model T Ford in the blaze. About three customer vehicles left for service before the long Thanksgiving weekend also were damaged, officials said. Alexander estimated damage to his buildings and contents at $3.4 million. Alexander has been in business at the same location for 22 years, he said. Just last Saturday, he completed three months' worth of remodeling remodeling /re·mod·el·ing/ (re-mod´el-ing) reorganization or renovation of an old structure. bone remodeling at his property with plants, trees, new carpeting and fresh paint. The cause of the blaze was being investigated by the Fire Department's arson officials and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents, who routinely help the Fire Department. The blaze was not believed to be suspicious in nature, said Bill Cass, a senior investigator for the LAFD's Arson Investigation Section. CAPTION(S): 2 photos, map PHOTO (1) Firefighters attack the blaze at Autocessories Wholesale on North Sepulveda Boulevard as fire blows out from under the bay doors. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News (2) Battalion Chief Robert Rose For the Nevada politician and judge, see Robert E. Rose. For the baseball player, see Robert Rose (baseball) Robert Rose (born December 27 1964, in Rochester, New York) is a retired American / Australian professional basketball player in the Australian National Basketball League. makes his way through the charred rubble at Autocessories Wholesale in North Hills. Andy Holzman/Daily News Map: North Hills Site of fire |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion