LAFD TORCHES OLD DYNAMITE IN BUILDING.Byline: Josh Kleinbaum Staff Writer VAN NUYS - Early Wednesday, city firefighters deliberately burned an industrial building where dozens of sticks of old, unstable dynamite dynamite, explosive made from nitroglycerin and an inert, porous filler such as wood pulp, sawdust, kieselguhr, or some other absorbent material. The proportions vary in different kinds of dynamite; often ammonium nitrate or sodium nitrate is added. were found, authorities said. 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. ignited the fire at 6:23 a.m., causing significant damage to one unit of an industrial building in the 7900 block of Haskell Avenue, officials said. The San Diego Freeway The San Diego Freeway (Interstate 405, and the part of Interstate 5 south of the El Toro Y[1]) is one of the principal north-south highways in Southern California, and the major beltway of I-5 running through Southern California. was closed, Metrolink service from Ventura County halted and some neighboring neigh·bor n. 1. One who lives near or next to another. 2. A person, place, or thing adjacent to or located near another. 3. A fellow human. 4. Used as a form of familiar address. v. buildings evacuated e·vac·u·ate v. e·vac·u·at·ed, e·vac·u·at·ing, e·vac·u·ates v.tr. 1. a. To empty or remove the contents of. b. To create a vacuum in. 2. during the hour the fire burned. ``It's a decision made by the bomb squad, LAPD 1. LAPD - Link Access Procedure on the D channel. 2. LAPD - Los Angeles Police Department. commanders and our incident commanders on the scene as to what's best,'' Fire Department spokesman Ron Myers said of the decision to set the building ablaze. ``It's very rare, but it was decided this was the best way to handle it because of the volatility of the product.'' It was unclear Wednesday who owned the building or if the owner was consulted about the decision to burn it. The strange chain of events that led to the blaze began about 9 a.m. Tuesday, when police responded to a call of a suspicious package in Valley Village, 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. police Officer Grace Brady said. There, a man had a stick of dynamite, which he said was left by his former roommate, James Wurth, already in police custody on auto theft charges. Officers' investigation into Wurth led police to the building on Haskell Avenue. When they arrived, two men were out front - Guy Fostersmith and Arthur Chornuy. Fostersmith fled inside the building, beginning a six-hour standoff with police. Chornuy surrendered, telling police about the dynamite in the building, Brady said. During the standoff, another man, Bill Brooks The name Bill Brooks can refer to any of the following:
Fostersmith surrendered to police about 8:30 p.m., ending the standoff. At that point, the LAPD's bomb squad searched the building and discovered the explosives, Brady said. After spending hours examining options, officials decided to destroy the dynamite by setting the building on fire - something they've done before, but rarely. The Fire Department sprayed neighboring buildings with fire-retardant gel to ensure the flames wouldn't spread and set up cameras so they could control the blaze safely from a distance. The dynamite did not explode in the fire - fire alone is not enough to ignite it. The sticks need a small explosion to trigger the larger explosion, which is why dynamite is usually set off with a blasting cap Noun 1. blasting cap - a small tube filled with detonating substances; used to detonate high explosives detonating device, detonator, cap - a mechanical or electrical explosive device or a small amount of explosive; can be used to initiate the reaction of a , said officials. Fostersmith and Chornuy were arrested on suspicion of possession of explosives, and Wurth could face similar charges, Brady said. Josh Kleinbaum, (818) 713-3669 josh.kleinbaum(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1) Los Angeles firefighters set fire to an industrial building at Haskell Avenue and Strathern Street early Wednesday to destroy a cache of unstable dynamite found inside. (2) Firefighters spray water on the blazing building containing dynamite to keep the fire from spreading. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News |
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