Firefighters have knocked down a greater alarm fire inside a vacant two-story commercial building in Venice — a blaze that spread from a nearby homeless encampment and temporarily threatened two other buildings, the Los Angeles Fire Department reported.
The blaze at 723 S. Ocean Front Walk was reported at 6:19 a.m., said fire department spokesman Brian Humphrey. Active flames were extinguished 2 hours, 17 minutes later, according to the LAFD.
No injuries were reported.
The building — heavily damaged and now unstable, the LAFD said — is a two-story 6,952-square-foot structure.
The flames extended through the roof, and firefighters were forced into a defensive position initially, Humphrey said.
The department dispatched 116 firefighters to the scene. The LAFD also sent a non-tethered drone flying at less that 150 feet into the area.