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Residents alarmed by vacant building fires near them
Residents in downtown Los Angeles say they feel threatened by recent vacant building fires near their homes.
LOS ANGELES - Residents living near a cluster of vacant buildings in downtown Los Angeles say they are increasingly worried after several nearby properties caught fire in recent months — including one blaze that erupted just feet from their apartment complex.
New cellphone video obtained exclusively by FOX 11 shows a massive fire tearing through a building on Hope Street around 4 a.m. on Mother’s Day, sending flames shooting high into the sky near occupied apartments.
"It was really hot in there. I had to back up at one point. It felt like I was almost melting," said resident Alex Paulson, who recorded the fire on his cellphone.
In the video, Paulson can be heard yelling, "My building is about to catch on bleeping fire."
Paulson said he and his neighbors woke up to smoke, sirens and emergency alarms as firefighters rushed to the scene.
"Over the loudspeaker — they’re like, ‘Residents please get out, this is real,’" another neighbor told FOX 11.
By morning, ash and debris covered apartment balconies and the pool area. Residents pointed to several nearby buildings that are boarded up, vacant and listed for sale or lease.
"It’s not just this building that went up in flames. That building, that building and this building have all blown up. That is the fourth building on the block to go up in flames," Paulson said.
Another resident said the fires appear to be becoming more common on the block.
"Two buildings on this street, this right here, it’s like this whole block is going that way," the neighbor said.
When asked what may be causing the fires, one resident speculated transients could be involved, though investigators have not announced a cause.
About a year and a half ago, another major fire broke out directly across Hope Street at the historic Morrison Hotel, famous for appearing on the cover of a Doors album. Though the building was considered vacant, cellphone video from the fire showed at least one person on a fire escape as flames spread through the structure.
"In the fire department, we say there are no vacant buildings in Los Angeles," an LAFD official said during coverage of the Morrison Hotel fire in December 2024.
Residents now say they are living on edge as investigators work to determine what caused the latest blaze.
"It’s really weird. I’m going to keep one eye open and be ready if it happens again," Paulson said.
In a statement to FOX 11, Los Angeles City Councilmember Ysabel Jurado said residents in the South Park neighborhood "deserve to feel safe in their homes and in the neighborhoods around them."
Jurado said her office is working with city departments to identify problem properties in the area and push for stronger enforcement involving unsecured or neglected buildings.
"The cause of these fires is a matter for LAFD investigators, and we will continue to rely on the Fire Department for those findings," Jurado said in the statement. "But regardless of the cause, property owners have a responsibility to secure and maintain their buildings so they do not become ongoing hazards for residents, first responders or the surrounding community."