GARDEN GROVE : Asbestos Effects Feared After Fire
Firefighters who doused a blaze in a two-story office building early Sunday may have been exposed to asbestos inhalation from burning ceiling tiles and are filing injury reports on the incident, fire officials said.
The 2:40 a.m. fire damaged 20 office suites in an unoccupied Cedarbrook Business Park building at 12900 Garden Grove Blvd., causing an estimated $300,000 in losses, said Garden Grove Fire Department Battalion Chief Vince Bonaker.
A total of 26 firefighters from the Garden Grove, Santa Ana, Anaheim and Orange fire departments took 30 minutes to control the blaze. They are all filing injury reports with their respective departments for possible asbestos contamination, Bonaker said.
Ceiling tiles containing highly concentrated amounts of asbestos were discovered after firefighters had been on the scene for 2 1/2 hours.
The cause of the fire, which damaged both floors and the attic area of the building, remains under investigation. No other injuries were reported.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
