1 worker killed, 2 others injured after fire breaks out at building under construction in West LA

WEST LOS ANGELES, Calif. (KABC) -- A worker was killed and two others were injured in an electrical fire that erupted at a high-rise building under construction in the Sawtelle neighborhood of West Los Angeles Thursday afternoon.

The fire was reported around 12:10 p.m. in the 12100 block of West Olympic Boulevard, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
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Fire officials say rebar became electrically energized and apparently made contact with high voltage lines, sparking the blaze.

Two workers were able to evacuate the building, but a third did not survive.

Firefighters were able to knock down the fire in about half an hour.
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LADWP and Southern California Edison were called in to ensure the building was de-energized, officials said.

The two injured workers were transported to a local hospital in unknown condition. Additional information, including their ages, was not immediately released.