Christmas tree fire damages Cypress Park beauty salon

CYPRESS PARK, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Christmas tree lights sparked a fire that left one beauty salon in Cypress Park heavily damaged Christmas morning.

Makeup artist Christi Colato and the salon owner got the call Christmas morning that the business they opened just last year - and had decorated for the holidays - was on fire.

"It's sad for everybody, and when it's Christmas, it's the worst thing," said Colato.

The inside of Katy's Beauty Salon was partly destroyed by smoke and flames.

Firefighters said when they arrived, they saw no flames because the business had a security door in front, but they quickly knew something wasn't right.

"You could feel the heat and could smell smoke," said Capt. Vito Violante of the Los Angeles City Fire Department. "We knew we had something going on."

Once inside, firefighters made their way to the back of the store, where a Christmas tree was located.

Authorities said the workers forgot to turn off the tree lights when they left the day before at 5 p.m., and at some point throughout the night, the tree sparked, caught fire, exploded and took out the room.

Fortunately, the salon was so tightly sealed, the fire managed to snuff itself out, preventing flames from spreading to other neighboring businesses, according to fire officials.

Authorities said the fire is a reminder to others this time of year to make sure trees don't dry out. It appeared the tree that caught fire was never put in water.

Fire officials also stressed that all power should be shut off when someone is leaving their home or business.

Fortunately, the salon owner had insurance and a second salon in another location to refer clients to.

The owner said what mattered most is no one was hurt.