Bellflower
Sheriff’s arson investigators say they do not believe arson is the cause of a $500,000 fire at a grocery store last week, an investigator said Tuesday.
“We’re 90% sure it was accidental,” Sgt. Bob Briley, sheriff’s arson detail investigator, said of the Aug. 13 fire. “It was probably caused by malfunctioning or faulty electrical wiring.”
Materials taken from the debris of the blaze at Quality Grocery Warehouse, 17602 Bellflower Blvd., is being analyzed by the sheriff’s crime lab with results expected by the end of the week, Briley said.
The fire, which started at 9:16 p.m. and burned for about six hours, caused $380,000 in damage to the 40,000-square-foot building and destroyed $120,000 in contents. The roof of the building collapsed during the fire.
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