Fire Rips Los Feliz Condo Project

A two-story condominium project under construction in the Los Feliz area burned to the ground Friday, causing an estimated $700,000 damage, Los Angeles city fire officials said. No one was seriously injured.

Authorities said that because of the suspicious nature of the fire--like the rate at which flames engulfed the structure--the incident is under investigation. A possible suspect was being held for questioning in the fire, which broke out at 4440 Avocado St.

“We do have an individual who is being detained regarding the fire,” said Jim Young, division commander for the Los Angles Fire Department. “Arson is a possibility.”

Several arson fires have broken out in recent months at buildings under construction in the Los Angeles area, including structures in the San Fernando Valley, Pasadena and Westwood areas. Fire officials did not say whether any of the fires were connected.

The Los Feliz building was engulfed in raging flames moments after the fire began.

“It was well involved immediately,” Young said. “That is unusual in an unoccupied building that had people in it an hour before the fire started.”

One firefighter suffered smoke inhalation and exhaustion battling the blaze. The blaze began at 4:43 p.m. and was put out less than an hour later by about 100 firefighters.

Young said the building owner was at the construction site an hour before the fire started. When he learned of the blaze, the owner returned to the command post and seemed “very surprised,” Young said.

The condominium complex consisted of eight units--a pair of two-story structures with four units apiece. One building was gutted while the other suffered heavy damage, Young said.

Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department’s Northeast Division were sent to the fire scene to help with “a severe crowd problem.”