LAFD firefighter injured in explosion at homeless encampment – ​​NBC Los Angeles

A firefighter was injured Monday in an explosion after responding to a brush fire at a homeless encampment in the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area in the west San Fernando Valley.

The half-acre fire was reported in the 15700 block of West Burbank Boulevard. As firefighters entered the area of ​​the encampment and brush fire, one was injured in an explosion.

The firefighter was airlifted to the hospital. Details about the firefighter's injuries were not immediately available.

Details about what exploded were not immediately available.

A water-dropping helicopter responded to the fire near the recreation area with two golf courses, a model aircraft field and park. No buildings appeared to be threatened by flames.

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LAFD Alert- Sepulveda Basin Brush Fire 15700 W Burbank Bl MAP: FS88; DETAILS: Injured firefighter battling a grass fire in a homeless encampment https://t.co/AVMUEJk3Hs

— LAFD (@LAFD) June 24, 2024

The NBC4 I-team reported in May that there were 13,909 homeless fires in Los Angeles in 2023, almost double the number of such fires in 2020, according to LAFD data. Los Angeles Fire Department data for the last five calendar years, obtained by the I-Team, showed the number of fires related to homeless people has been continuously climbing.