No One Injured After Three Buildings Damaged at El Monte Facility Sunday

Written by AARON CASTREJON
CityWatch Editor

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EL MONTE - An outside fire so intense it eventually led to the destruction of three metal clad buildings was finally knocked down Sunday after more than five hours of burning.

Two of the three buildings that burned were vacant. One building housed what was described as “building materials,” which jettisoned thick columns of black smoke as they burned, putting out a horrid “pool chemical” smell across the San Gabriel valley.

Firefighters were dispatched to the blaze at 9240 Whitmore Street just after 2 p.m. Sunday, July 16. The response was immediately upgraded to a second alarm, bringing in 60 to 70 additional firefighters after heavy fire and smoke were observed on arrival, according to Henry Narvaez, Los Angeles County Fire Department public information officer.

The initial outside fire penetrated to inside of a building and spread throughout. The fire was so hot that it began burning in buildings on either side of the first building to be affected, Narvaez told SGV CityWatch.

The response was then upgraded to a third-alarm, bringing 100or more firefighters across the sand Gabriel Valley to the scene.

After the initial fire was put out, cruise remain on scene for many more hours to completely put out hot spots inside of the burning buildings. Excavators room brought in and begin ripping apart, and tearing down the metal clad buildings.

The “pool chemical” smell was possibly detected as far away as the city of Upland, according to a statement from the Upland Police Department.

More than five hours, after firefighters were dispatched, knockdown was called. The cause is still under investigation.