LOS ANGELES — On Sunday, May 27, 2007 at 2:21 PM, 23 Companies of Los Angeles Firefighters, 4 LAFD Rescue Ambulances, 1 Arson Unit, 2 Urban Search and Rescue Units, 1 Hazardous Materials Squad, 3 EMS Battalion Captains, 3 Battalion Chief Officer Command Teams and 1 Division Chief Officer Command Team, a total of 147 Los Angeles Fire Department personnel, responded to a Major Emergency Structure Fire at a new car storage yard near 4602 Brazil Street in the Atwater Village area of Los Angeles.

The aforementioned LAFD personnel were joined in Automatic Aid by 5 Engine Companies, 1 Truck Company and a Battalion Chief from the neighboring Glendale Fire Department, and 1 Battalion Chief from the nearby Burbank Fire Department. All responders operated under the Unified Command of LAFD Assistant Chief Terrance Manning and Glendale Fire Department Battalion Chief Robert Doyle.

First to arrive Los Angeles Firefighters quickly navigated the remote portion of an industrial district to discover a vacant and aging one-story 50' x 100' commercial structure fully involved, with flames extending to vegetation, rubbish and densely stored new vehicles nearby.

In a well-coordinated defensive operation, master hose streams were swiftly focused on the decrepit wooden structure, as flames fanned by 10 mile-per-hour winds took hold of unkempt and highly flammable vegetation, including palm trees as much as a quarter-mile away.

The wind-driven embers drove fire north and east to the Los Angeles River, as teams of Firefighters worked multiple handlines on the distant flames, paying close heed to a busy adjacent railroad and high-voltage electrical lines above portions of the fire.

Simultaneously, their colleagues sought to prevent rapid fire spread among dozens of closely parked vehicles stored bumper-to-bumper near the burning building.

Weakened by the blaze, the ramshackle structure collapsed as a total loss. Despite the efforts of Firefighters, a total of 53 new passenger vehicles, including several sedans destined for livery service, were damaged or destroyed by fire.

During the intense battle against the flames, one Los Angeles Firefighter sustained a sizeable laceration to his left hand. He was transported in good condition to Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center, where he was treated and released to remain off-duty.

No other injuries were reported.

Firefighter/Heavy Equipment Operators from the LAFD Tractor Company assisted with the prolonged overhaul of smoldering debris.

Monetary loss from the fire is still being tabulated. Though witnesses place fire origin in close proximity to the vacant structure, the specific cause of the blaze remains categorized as "under investigation".