5 Deputies Injured While Helping Evacuate Residents From Apartment Fire In The South Bay: Sheriff

LOMITA, CA — Five deputies were injured earlier this week while helping evacuate residents from an apartment fire in the South Bay, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

The fire happened around 8:45 p.m. Monday at an apartment complex in the Lomita Sheriff's Station jurisdiction.

Deputies say that officers arrived at the scene of an apartment complex full engulfed in flames and, "without hesitation," or the proper equipment, went into the complex to help evacuate residents.

A video published by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department on Friday morning shows a deputy using an emergency fire hose to try to suppress the flames. Other deputies can be seen walking through heavy smoke while kicking down doors and ensuring all the units were clear.

“I am proud of our deputy personnel and their heroic actions,” Captain Kimberly Guerrero of the sheriff's department said in a statement Friday. "Their actions are truly commendable.”

No residents of the apartment were injured in the fire. But five deputies were taken to local hospitals and were treated for minor smoke inhalation, authorities said. They're all expected to make a full recovery, according to the LASD.

People in the video can be heard thanking the deputies for their quick thinking, including one woman who commended them for potentially saving a woman's life.

"You saved this lady's life because you banged so hard on her apartment," the woman can be heard saying. "She was sleeping. She woke up because you were banging on her window."

The fire appeared to have started after an electric stove malfunction, according to authorities. It caused nearly $700,000 in damages to the property, authorities said.