Local News in Brief : Fire Damages Apartments
A malfunction in a roof-top air conditioning unit triggered a $180,000 fire Sunday in an apartment building near the USC campus, authorities said.
The fire at 2711 S. Ellendale Place was reported shortly after 4 p.m., Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Jim Wells said.
Forty firefighters battled the blaze in the 60-unit building, dousing the flames within 15 minutes, Wells said.
Most of the damage resulted when water pipes in the building’s attic burst due to the heat, soaking about two dozen apartments throughout the building, he said.
The fire was caused by an electrical malfunction in the air conditioning unit on the roof of the complex, causing it to overheat.
No injuries were reported.
Fire officials said some residents of the building were displaced by the fire and the Red Cross set up a temporary shelter at Adams Junior High School on West 30th Street.
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