Plumber's Torch Sparks Stubborn Brentwood Blaze

On Wednesday, September 1, 2010 at 2:50 PM, 9 Companies of Los Angeles Firefighters, 6 LAFD Rescue Ambulances, 1 Rehab Tender, 3 EMS Battalion Captains, 1 Battalion Chief Officer Command Team and 1 Division Chief Officer Command Team, a total of 64 Los Angeles Fire Department personnel under the direction of Battalion Chief Ralph Ramirez, responded to a Greater Alarm Structure Fire at 485 Halvern Drive in the Los Angeles community of Brentwood.

Firefighters arrived quickly to find smoke showing from the improved attic of a 6,513 square-foot two-story single family home undergoing a major remodeling.

Met by contractors who had been overseeing a plumbing upgrade, firefighters soon learned that a torch being used by a plumber had ignited construction materials within the walls and soon spread to the fully finished 'third-level' attic in the central portion of the expansive home.

With all construction workers safe and accounted for, comprehensive salvage efforts were swiftly undertaken as firefighters extended handlines to battle stubborn fire in concealed spaces throughout the 70 year-old non-fire sprinklered home.

Strategic vertical ventilation helped curtail the spread of fire, as firefighters used thermal imaging devices to find and abate the rapidly spreading fire.

The relentless effort of firefighters confined flames to the central portion of the home, with the blaze fully extinguished in just 59 minutes.

There were no injuries.

Loss from the fire is estimated at $352,000 ($350,000 structure & $2,000 contents). The cause of this mid-afternoon blaze is categorized as accidental.

(photos)

Submitted by Brian Humphrey, Spokesman
Los Angeles Fire Department