Santa Monica Fire Blazes Near Third Street Promenade
Updated at the bottom with information that explosions were heard as the fire erupted. First posted at 5:26 p.m.
@danilolee After the fire.
Fire erupted in a multi-story building near Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica today.
The blaze was confirmed to the Weekly by a Santa Monica fire official, but she did not have time to give details.
A Twitter user named Kiara says ...
... that a nearby theater, presumably the AMC complex at Third Street Promenade (the AMC Santa Monica 7), was evacuated.
Another Twitter user, Queen Wendy, said the Promenade was clouded in fog and smoke:
@OGdavinaa yeah it is. Firefighters are here so its better now. The whole promenade smells like smoke and its foggy.
— Queen Wendy ☂☀ (@AfricaWUBata) April 14, 2012
@SoCalScanner first tweeted info about the fire, about 5:15 p.m., saying it was in a three-story apartment building at 1305 2nd St.
[Added at 5:42 p.m.]: Twitter user BHScanner says that the Los Angeles Fire Department has been called in to help out.
@therealricker
An LAFD spokesman confirmed the assist call but said he could not comment further because it was not L.A.'s "jurisdiction."
[Added at 5:50 p.m.]: Santa Monica police Sgt. Richard Lewis tells the Weekly that authorities were evacuating the address above and adjacent buildings:
Evacuations are in progress. It's a pretty big fire right now.
He indicated the fire was reported about 5:15 p.m.
He said Santa Monica Boulevard at Second Street is probably shut down.
[Added at 6:07 p.m.]: Seems like the firefighters had the thing finished about 5:50 p.m. or thereafter, with @SoCalScanner stating they had declared a "knockdown."
No injuries were reported.
[Update at 6:33 p.m.]: Santa Monica fire Capt. Judah Mitchell told the Weekly that 911 callers reported multiple explosions in the building, possibly on the third floor, as they first phoned for help at 5:09 p.m.
He confirmed that the theater nearby was evacuated.
Mitchell also said that residents of the three-story, brick structure, which he called "one of the older historical buildings in the city," had "self-evacuated" by the time first-responders arrived.
He said every fire resource available in the city was there:
All six of our engine companies, plus our truck and hazmat unit, were at the scene.
Task Force 63 from the city of L.A. was called in for assistance, and the LAFD was asked to cover the rest of Santa Monica in case other emergencies broke out, Mitchell said.
The cause was under investigation, he said.
Lewis of San Monica police said the blaze and its aftermath affected residential six units.
[@dennisjromero / djromero@laweekly.com / @LAWeeklyNews]
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