Fire destroys strip mall in Boyle Heights

BOYLE HEIGHTS, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A fire sparked by a gas leak inside a laundromat heavily damaged a strip mall in Boyle Heights Friday morning, authorities said.

The blaze erupted at the one-story commercial mall in the 2100 block of E. Whittier Boulevard at about 1:45 a.m.

Los Angeles Fire Department spokeswoman Margaret Stewart said it took 75 firefighters about an hour to knock it down.

No injuries were reported, but the fire heavily damaged the building housing the laundromat and caused the front of the structure to collapse, Stewart said.

Damage estimates were not immediately available. Arson investigators were slated to examine the scene.