Cause Of Torrance Apartment Fire In Which 1 Was Found Dead Still Unknown

TORRANCE (CBSLA.com) — Investigators late Sunday were trying to determine the cause of an apartment fire in Torrance in which one person was found deceased.

Firefighters discovered a body inside one of the units in the 22500 block of Ocean Avenue around 2 a.m.

When the fire erupted, flames could be seen shooting out of the roof of the Kona-Kai apartments. Investigators said the heat was so intense, windows exploded, startling residents like Fred Redding.

"The flames were shooting out of the building of that window. Very far and I thought that whole building was going to fall," he said.

The fire was knocked down within 15 minutes by 34 firefighters, but they found a victim who had been overcome by smoke and flames in the main unit that burned.

"The whole unit is damaged with fire. Fire was blowing out of the windows on both sides of the unit and the victim was inside and we did not move the victim out and treat the victim," said a fire captain.

Investigators say six units were damaged, one was completed destroyed.

Neighbors say they're upset something like this happened so close to home.

"The fact that it happened here, it's just kind of like, whoa, you know," a neighbor said. "It just kinda throws you a little bit because you just don't expect it in this kind of area."

Other residents at the complex said they have smoke detectors in their units, but investigators say the damage is too significant to tell if the main unit involved in the fire also had working smoke
detectors.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.