City On Flame

Saw fire engines headed toward this mess, & several newschoppers hovering over it. Third time this structure has been ablaze in the 12+ yrs. I've lived around here, as noted in the video & text. The previous times it was the other end.

Witness John Wesley said it’s not the first time this strip mall has seen what he referred to as “odd fires.”

“Full flames, and it looked like something that was close to getting out of control,” he said. “It was kinda odd because that business has been closed for a long time and this plaza here has seen a couple of odd fires through the years.”

In fact, the same strip mall suffered a greater-alarm fire in May 2020.

#BREAKING #Koreatown: @LAFD responds to karaoke bar fire on Vermont. No injuries reported so far. pic.twitter.com/ztSYDEEvoj

— Robert Kovacik (@RobertNBCLA) November 5, 2021

Man, things must be dull in Sac'to if they can spend 18 mins. on a fire hundreds of miles away.

Plumes of smoke rose over Koreatown on Thursday night as what appeared to be a karaoke lounge was destroyed by fire.

The blaze was reported around 6:40 p.m. in the 200 block of Vermont Avenue near West 2nd Street, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

Neighbors tweeted photos and videos of orange flames shooting up from the building and smoke pulsing high into the night sky.

More than 100 firefighters fought the flames. Some went on the roof but had to retreat when it became unstable, the Fire Department said.

The firefighters then went on the defense rather than offense, focusing on protecting nearby structures.

Still, they were able to put out the fire by 8:15 p.m.

They planned to remain through the night to make sure the flames did not rise again. Heavy equipment would be used to clear debris and take down unsafe walls if necessary.

No injuries were reported.

[KTTV & L.A.T.]