A fire at an auto body shop in North Hollywood burned for more than three hours and spread to nearby buildings before it was extinguished by firefighters Saturday morning.
Heavy equipment operators were dispatched to the scene at about 8 a.m. to assist firefighters in handling smoldering debris from the blaze, said Nicholas Prange of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
"Lankershim (Boulevard) will be closed from Vanowen (Street) to Hart (Street) to allow the heavy equipment access to the addresses," Prange said.
A total of "127 firefighters showed their endurance during a 3-hour- and-8 minute battle against several commercial buildings ablaze, spanning across the block between Lankershim and Troost," he said.
Firefighters arrived at the building located at 6836 Lankershim Blvd., near Vanowen Street, at 11:30 p.m. Friday and found a 10,614-square-foot business engulfed in flames, Prange said.
That address corresponds to a business named Auto Giant Supplies.
Firefighters made their way into the building and cut holes in the roof to ventilate the fire, but as the fire continued to grow, crews were ordered off the roof and out of the building to assume a defensive posture, Prange said.
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"Firefighters got plenty of practice aiming their heavy streams, with the help of spotters down range guiding them to the right water trajectory," Prange said. "The fire has been defeated by the major emergency assignment of personnel."
During the fight, crews had to keep clear of electrical wires that came down in front of the building, he said.
The blaze quickly extended to a nearby building and flames were pushing through the roof, Prange said. It was unclear how many other buildings were damaged.
No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire was under investigation.
