About 120 residents were displaced from their home after an apartment fire near Lincoln and Broadway on Monday night.
According to the Santa Monica Fire Department, firefighters responded to a fire at 1447 Lincoln Blvd. at about 6:20 p.m. and found smoke coming from the underground garage of the five story mixed use building. While on firefighters were on scene, there was an explosion from below street level creating additional smoke and fire in the garage.
Firefighters called for a second alarm response due to the complexity of fighting the fire below ground.
About 45 firefighters from Santa Monica and Los Angeles responded to the scene with multiple trucks and ambulances. Police officers closed the surrounding streets and the fire was brought under control in about 34 minutes.
According to the Fire Department’s initial report, all 96 apartment units at 1447 Lincoln Blvd were displaced along with five local businesses, (Starbucks, Shelley’s Video, Chase bank, Fresh Brothers, and Jersey Mike’s).
“The American Red Cross responded to assist and place all of the displaced residence in a temporary hotel room while the buildings electrical power is restored,” said SMFD’s report.
City buses were used to transport displaced residents and SMFD said the police department helped in the response.
“SMPD was also a vital part of the evacuation process, assisting all families with retrieving their immediate personal belongings and securing their properties,” said the report. “There were no firefighter injuries that were reported, but unfortunately two residents had to be transported to local hospital for medical issues related to the evacuation.”
