Condos Burn in Drug Factory Explosion : 10 in Sylmar Left Homeless After Fire Causes $250,000 in Damage

A Sylmar condominium being used as a clandestine drug laboratory exploded and caught fire Friday, leaving 10 people homeless, authorities said.

The explosion occurred shortly after 6 a.m. in the 12600 block of Ralston Avenue, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Jim Wells said.

It was ignited by an electric heater being used to dry reconstituted cocaine in a walk-in closet, Los Angeles Police Detective Bill Felix said. As the drugs were drying, they emitted fumes from acetone, a flammable chemical used in the process of diluting cocaine, he said.

“It must have been a heck of an explosion,” Police Lt. Gary Rogness said. “The whole face of the top part of the condo is blown out.” No one was hurt, and authorities do not think anyone was home at the time. A suspect is being sought.

16 Pounds of Cocaine Found

Investigators found 16 pounds of cocaine in the damaged condominium, where evidence was found indicating that at least 400 pounds more had recently been moved or sold, Felix said.

Friday’s explosion was on the second floor of the condominium, he said. Substantial amounts of acetone were found on the first floor and in the garage. If the explosion had ignited all of the acetone, deaths and serious injuries could have resulted in the 25- to 30-unit complex, he said.

The street value of the cocaine found in the condominium was estimated at more than $1.5 million, and the entire lab “was a multimillion-dollar operation,” Felix said.

The fire caused about $250,000 in damage to the complex, destroying the unit where the lab was and slightly damaging another, Wells said. Firefighters extinguished the blaze in about 15 minutes, he said.