11 Los Angeles firefighters hurt while running from blast

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By STEFANIE DAZIO and FRANK BAKER

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An explosion Saturday at a hash oil manufacturer in downtown Los Angeles injured 11 firefighters who had gone inside and on the roof to try to knock down a fire and then had to run for their lives when a ball of flames shot out the building and scorched a fire truck across the street.

Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Erik Scott said “one significant explosion” shook the neighborhood around 6:30 p.m. Firefighters inside had to run through a wall of flames he estimated as 30 feet high and wide, and those on the roof scrambled down a ladder that was engulfed in fire.

Scott said people at the scene described the explosion as sounding like a freight train or jet engine. Some of the fleeing firefighters were on fire and tore off their protective equipment and left it on the sidewalk, along with melted helmets, Scott said.

“The was one of the worst scenes I’ve seen,” he said.



Los Angeles Fire Department firefighters push ambulance cots at the scene of a structure fire that injured multiple firefighters, according to a fire department spokesman, Saturday, May 16, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)


Read more: https://apnews.com/597864b3e0f1c56ccee2d51f7e4e572c

[Historic NY]

1. I saw video it was horrific, LAFD put out a MAYDAY....

call. They were lucky.

[magicarpet]

2. Poor firefighters,... boobie traps.....

You really never know what people have stored on their property,.... kind of walk in blind into a dangerous blazing/explosive inferno.

[csziggy]

3. It was probably not a booby trap - the company is legitimate

At least as legitimate as any marijuana dispensary or supplier can be.

From the article linked in the OP:

Scott said the building was a warehouse for SmokeTokes, which he described as a maker of “butane honey oil.” Butane is an odorless gas that easily ignites, and it’s used in the process to extract the high-inducing chemical THC from cannabis to create a highly potent concentrate also known as hash oil. The oil is used in vape pens, edibles, waxes and other products.

On its website, SmokeTokes advertises a variety of products including “puff bars,” pipes, “dab” tools, vaporizers, “torches and butane,” and cartridges. The company says it is “an international distributor and wholesaler of smoking and vaping products, and related accessories.” Founded in 2009, it offers “discounts to loyal customers, fast shipping, a huge catalog of products and customer service that is untouched.”

[magicarpet]

8. I meant booby trap by walking into the unknown during fighting a fire.

Not knowing what they had stored on the premises or what might ignite and then explode.

[csziggy]

9. Oh - I think of booby traps as deliberate items for nefarious uses

Some cities keep lists of companies that have volatile compounds that could explode. I suspect that the Republican/Libertarian attitudes have reduced those databases. In cases like this it could save on injuries or even lives.

[Warpy]

5. Probably not a trap, have you ever seen what happens if you water

a grease fire? The oil storage probably ruptured and BOOM.

Throw in some butane and you can take out a whole neighborhood.

[magicarpet]

7. Oh my,... that water made things way worse !

[Warpy]

10. I deep fry in a wok and the lid isn't that tight fitting

but a combination of the lid and turning the stove off has worked. There's a vid from England about putting out a fire in a pot without a lid, they suggest soaking a kitchen towel in water, wringing it out completely, and laying it over the top of the pot, burner off. Baking soda will work in a pinch, or a fire extinguisher, something I always keep in the kitchen in case the lid doesn't work for some reason. The towel in the English method won't be worth much, but at least you won't burn the house down.

Oil fires are nasty. With water, the burning oil floats on the water, the water flashes into steam and aerosolizes the burning oil, and no more house.

[mbusby]

4. Using butane extraction...

...is banded in Colorado. There are other non-flammable ways to extract THC using CO2.

[uncle ray]

11. home extraction using flammables is banned.

commercial extraction is legal.

[Grokenstein]

6. In light of that Missouri MAGA-pig terrorist who executed himself

when cornered by the FBI for planning to blow up a Kansas City hospital, I'm honestly relieved this was "just" an accident.

But hearts out to all the firefighters involved, especially the eleven injured, and especially the three with critical injuries. All are expected to survive, but two are on ventilators and "survive" doesn't take into account the grievous damage they've suffered.

[Eugene]

12. Investigators open criminal probe into LA explosion

Source: Associated Press

Investigators open criminal probe into LA explosion

By STEFANIE DAZIO and FRANK BAKER
May 17, 2020

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Police and fire investigators launched a criminal probe Sunday into the cause of an explosion at a hash oil manufacturer in downtown Los Angeles that sent firefighters running for their lives.

Detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department’s major crimes division were working with the city Fire Department’s arson investigators to determine what might have sparked the blast that shot a ball of flames out of the building Saturday night and scorched a fire truck across the street, police spokesman Josh Rubenstein said.

“We’re in the very early stages of the investigation ... to understand what happened and figure out how to move forward,” he said.

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was assisting local fire investigators, an agency spokeswoman said.

The blast injured a dozen firefighters. Some of them who ran out onto sidewalks, where they tore off their burning protective equipment, including melted helmets, officials said.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/48a29168caab09da237d3cc56e6c2aa4