Fervent honking began shortly before 4 a.m. from motorists passing on Santa Fe Avenue in Huntington Park who saw one of the city’s two fire stations burning.
Neighbors living nearby knocked on the door of the two-story office and dormitory as the adjacent garage engulfed in flames.
They were trying to alert sleeping firefighters to a fire in their own building.
Eventually, crews from Huntington Park Fire Station No. 164 descended from their second-floor living quarters, some in shorts, others in T-shirts and flip-flops, according to the Los Angeles County supervisor, Janice Hahn.
Nevertheless, they salvaged as much material as possible and even fought the fire with garden hoses. Help also came from Los Angeles County firefighters from other stations, who helped put out the fire that destroyed much of the station.
County Supervisor Janice Hahn, right, visited the site Wednesday morning.
(Courtesy of Janice Hahn’s office)
Subsequently, the Los Angeles County Fire Department classified the fire as a two-alarm fire which was knocked down at 5:17 a.m.
There were no injuries or hospitalizations, firefighters said. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined and will be investigated by an outside agency, likely Cal Fire, said Kenichi Haskett, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
Hahn toured the burned facility with Huntington Park city leaders later that morning and released photos showing a burned sport utility vehicle and a fire truck.
There were also charred helmets, protective clothing and radio equipment.
“Above all, I wanted these firefighters to know that I support them (and) that the county supports them,” she said on social media.
Hahn said she also came to see the “devastation” for herself.
“I wanted the fire chief to know that the county will provide all the resources we need to make sure we can rebuild, replace and ensure these communities are still covered,” Hahn said.
Before the station was taken out of service, Haskett said the department tried to keep response times to around two to three minutes.
He confirmed some firefighters were being transferred to Vernon and surrounding communities, but could not give an exact timetable for when they would return to the station.
“It would be fair to say it takes about six months to a year to be 100 percent operational,” he said.
The destruction of the station leaves only one functioning fire station for the town of more than 50,000 residents.
Haskett said 33 firefighters are assigned to Station No. 164, with three teams of 11 members each, including paramedics, firefighters, fire truck operators and a battalion chief.
Huntington Park Mayor Karina Macias toured the area with Hahn, the city’s vice mayor and planning director.
Macias said the station had been in operation since 1962 and was known in the community as “The Big House 164.”
“Station 164 is a pillar of the community and it is unfortunate to see the damage caused by the fire, but I am glad no one was injured,” Macias said.
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