Photo courtesy of LBFD.
One man was killed and multiple others were injured following a fire at a two-story apartment complex that displaced a family of five in Long Beach over the weekend.
Firefighters responded to reports of a structure fire at 7:22PM on Sunday, January 1 on the 5500 block of Dairy Avenue, according to Long Beach Fire Department (LBFD) spokesman Jake Heflin.
Arriving personnel found heavy smoke and fire coming from an apartment unit on the first floor of the apartment complex with six units, Heflin said. Firefighters put out the flames by 7:40PM, and after a primary search of the place, they discovered a man’s body.
The majority of the fire was confined to one unit, however, the unit directly above the fire sustained significant smoke damage, displacing a family of five, Heflin said.
The family included a 28-year-old man who sustained injuries when he jumped from the second-story balcony to escape the fire. He was treated at the scene and subsequently transported to a local hospital, according to Heflin. The man’s 26-year-old wife, 9- and 7-year-old sons and 4-year-old daughter were evaluated and treated at the scene, as was a 24-year-old woman cut by glass.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Fire investigators and police detectives are working to identify the victim and notify relatives.
City News Service contributed to this report.
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