Let me begin by saying, I hope that everyone in the vicinity of this fire gets out safe and sound. However, early Monday morning, a large fire erupted in downtown L.A. The blaze broke out around 1:20 a.m. through around 5:30 a.m. Although the flames were seen miles away, they were contained, but ‘hot spots’ are continued to be sought after.

Hit the jump for the details.

JaaiR (JR)
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More than 250 firefighters rushed to the downtown Los Angeles blaze that tore down three buildings and forced local officials to close down two major freeways.

An apartment tower under construction in the 900 block of Fremont Avenue was consumed by the flames, along with two other buildings on the strip; a building at 313 N. Figueroa St. sustained “external damage from radiant heat,” said the Los Angeles Fire Department, while fire damaged several floors of a 16-story office tower at 212 N. Figueroa St.

“Large windows gave under the amount of heat,” LAFD spokesman Jaime Moore said. Sprinkler water damage can be added to the list of issues obtained during the fire. Sprinklers activated on six of its floors, Moore adds. “There was active fire on three floors.”

As the morning progresses, they begin to open up the freeways.

The northbound 110 Freeway remained closed as of 5 a.m., but Caltrans reopened the 101 Freeway and the southbound 110 at around 4:30 a.m. Caltrans says it hopes to reopen the 110 north by 8 a.m.

There has been no reported fatalities and the reason for the start of the fire is undetermined at this time, but we’ll keep you informed.

Check out the gallery for this morning’s L.A. scene.