Woman dies after garage fire ignites stored fireworks in South Los Angeles

A 30-year-old woman died Saturday after a fire in a South Los Angeles residential garage set off a large quantity of stored fireworks, sending explosions through the Jefferson Park neighborhood in the early morning hours, according to ABC7 Los Angeles.

The incident underscores the persistent danger of storing large quantities of fireworks inside residential structures, a problem Los Angeles authorities have struggled to address ahead of each summer fireworks season.

Firefighters responded to the 2400 block of South Ninth Avenue at 5:32 a.m. and extinguished the blaze in a detached garage within 20 minutes, the Los Angeles Fire Department said, according to ABC7 Los Angeles. The fire spread quickly to a large cache of fireworks stored inside, triggering a chain of explosions that rattled the surrounding block.

A driver passing by captured the fireworks detonations on video, footage that ABC7 Los Angeles later broadcast. The blasts sent bursts of light and noise through the Jefferson Park neighborhood well before sunrise.

LAFD personnel initially reported "one 30-year-old female with an unknown injury reported and being evaluated by LAFD personnel," according to an official statement cited by ABC7 Los Angeles. The Los Angeles Police Department subsequently confirmed the woman had died.

Around 7 a.m., the incident commander requested an arson investigation unit and cadaver dogs after a possible missing person was reported at the scene, ABC7 Los Angeles reported. LAPD detectives later removed a large quantity of fireworks from the residence.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. The victim's identity had not been publicly released as of Saturday morning.

Authorities have not disclosed where the fireworks originated or whether their storage violated local ordinances.