3 Hurt, 80 Evacuated in Redondo Fire

Three people were injured Friday and about 80 residents were temporarily evacuated when fire broke out in the storage room of a Redondo Beach apartment complex, authorities said.

Redondo Beach Battalion Chief Pat Aust said the cause of the 1:30 p.m. blaze, which did about $35,000 worth of damage, is still under investigation. Its origin, he said, was in a second-story storage room near the center of the 106-unit complex, Sun Harbour Apartments at the intersection of Hawthorne Boulevard and 190th Street.

Aust said the apartment manager, Ken Murray, 57, who lives in the unit adjoining the storage room, suffered heat exposure and smoke inhalation as he tried to fight the fire. He was treated at South Bay Hospital.

Also injured were Nery Casillo, 28, an employee at the complex, who suffered heat exposure and minor smoke inhalation, and resident Evalyn Limne, 61, who suffered smoke inhalation.

The building was evacuated for a short time during and after the fire, but residents were allowed to return after firefighters determined that none of the units had been damaged. Aust said most of the damage was to the storage room and lobby.