Two people were injured in a second-alarm fire that resulted in two explosions inside a North Long Beach commercial business Friday afternoon, fire officials said.

Long Beach Fire Department spokesperson Jake Heflin said the fire occurred shortly after 4 p.m. in the 2200 block of 69th Street. When fire units arrived at the business around 4:13 p.m. they witnessed fire coming from the roof of the structure, Heflin said. Additional units were requested and Los Angeles Fire County personnel were also called to the fire.

While firefighters were attempting to contain the blaze, two compressed gas cylinders inside the structure exploded, causing responders to change tactics, Heflin said.

Workers in neighboring buildings said the explosions “felt like an earthquake.”

At least two people were rescued from inside the building and were transported to a local hospital, although their condition was unknown, Heflin said. No other injuries were reported.

As of 5:30 p.m., the fire appeared to have been contained to one building with firefighters performing primary and secondary searches of the building.

The cause of the initial fire is under investigation.

Long Beach Fire Department personnel battled a fire at Titan Integrated Systems at 2211 E. 69th St. April 22, 2022. Photo by Brandon Richardson.

This story was updated to reflect the correct number of injuries. 

2 transported to hospital, 1 displaced following fire at 2-story apartment, LBFD says