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4 killed, dozens injured in Los Angeles explosion
November 6, 1997
Web posted at: 1:49 a.m. EST (0649 GMT)LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Four people were killed and dozens more were injured after an explosion ripped through a toy factory in downtown Los Angeles Wednesday afternoon.
The explosion followed a flash fire on the second floor of the Imperial Toy Company, where about 150 people work.
Three people were killed outright, a fourth died at a hospital and at least 25 injured, said city fire Capt. Steve Ruda. Los Angeles Fire Department Inspector Alan Matsumoto said two of the injured were transported to a hospital for treatment, while the rest were treated near the scene.
The explosion took place at about 3:20 p.m. local time, shaking the block-long, four-story factory and blowing out the windows.
Reports from the scene said the explosion was of such intensity that roofing material and windows were blown off.
"It was like a sonic boom, real loud," said Salvador Zepeda, owner of a cafe down the block. "It was like a dry explosion."
The explosion and "flash-type fire" involved a shrink-wrapping machine that seals caps for toy cap pistols, said Bill Bamattre, a fire chief at the scene.
It was not clear if the explosion or fire came first. A sprinkler system helped douse the flames, Bamattre said.
The family-owned company uses gunpowder to make caps for toy pistols, but also manufactures a wide variety of plastic toys. It is licensed to produce toys for Universal Studios, Pepsi, the Walt Disney Co., Hawaiian Punch and Kawasaki, among others.
Los Angeles' Roman Catholic Cardinal Roger Mahony, whose office is nearby, rushed to the scene to console the surviving workers.
"They're pretty well shell-shocked," Mahony said.
A spokesman for the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration said the company had not been the subject of any complaints.
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