Flames of heroism were as bright as the blaze itself when a pair of New York's Bravest narrowly escaped major injury after a floor collapse in a fiery battle at a downtown Los Angeles commercial building early this morning. According to the Los Angeles Fire Department, the potentially tragic turn unfolded while firefighters were combating intense flames that had already devoured sections of the two-story structure's interior.
Firefighters were executing a coordinated attack when two of them 'rode' a collapsing section of the second floor down to the first, descending like reluctant stuntmen into the billowing smoke below. With fortune favoring the fearless, reports indicate neither of the firefighters sustained serious injuries, a minor miracle given the perilous plunge.
At approximately 1:00 a.m., fire crews were summoned to tackle the conflagration located at the 1000 block of W Sunset Blvd. On arrival, they were met with the sight of an outdoor fire that had invaded a 7,406-square-foot building with ties to the city's health care services, as it once housed medical offices. A total of 68 firefighters under the command of Assistant Chief Steve Hissong were dispatched to wage war against the flames, as reported by the LAFD.
During the 58-minute battle that ensued, the crews, some split between the engulfed floors while others tore through the building's roof for ventilation, managed to fully extinguish the fire before it could claim more than its share of the urban landscape. Miraculously, the two firefighters who experienced the frightful fall rode the collapsing debris in a controlled manner, ultimately walking away to be checked at the hospital. The Los Angeles Fire Department's Arson and Counter-Terrorism Section (ACTS) has since launched an investigation into the inferno's origins.
