40 Displaced In Highland Park Apartment Fire

LOS ANGELES, CA — About 40 people were displaced after a fire broke out in an electrical vault at a Highland Park apartment building early Thursday morning, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

The fire was reported before 6 a.m. at a three-story building on Meridian Street near Avenue 56, which has two levels of residential units above a parking area.

Firefighters arrived to find flames burning inside an electrical vault containing meters that serve the apartments. The fire threatened a second-floor apartment and a first-floor office, according to the LAFD.

Crews attacked the blaze from inside the building and extinguished it, officials said.

Although no injuries were reported, approximately 40 people were displaced because of a power outage caused by the fire.

The American Red Cross was notified to assist those affected, while the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power was contacted about the electrical outage.

The cause of the fire was not immediately disclosed, and it was unclear when power would be restored or residents would be able to return to their homes.