75-year-old man killed, uncle seriously injured in fire at Mid-Wilshire duplex

MID-WILSHIRE, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A 75-year-old man died and his 88-year-old uncle was hospitalized after a fire broke out at a duplex early Friday morning in the Mid-Wilshire district, authorities said.

The blaze occurred about 3:48 a.m. on the first floor of a two-story residential building in the 1100 block of Sycamore Avenue, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

According to investigators, the two victims were apparently alerted to the fire by smoke alarms. The older man suffered smoke inhalation, and his nephew was found in grave condition "among excessive storage" in the 85-year-old building, which was not equipped with fire sprinklers, the fire department said in a statement.

Both men were transported to a hospital, where the younger man died and the elder patient was listed in serious condition. The deceased victim's name was not immediately released.

Thirty-five firefighters confined the flames to the downstairs residence and extinguished them within 16 minutes.

"The four occupants of the upstairs unit, who called 911 after being awakened by their functional smoke alarms, were not injured and are expected to return to their minimally damaged residence," the news release said.

The cause of the incident was under investigation.