Apparent suicide attempt at Los Angeles car dealership poisons police, firefighters

An apparent suicide attempt inside a Los Angeles car dealership on Friday created a noxious carbon monoxide cloud that poisoned responding firefighters and police officers, investigators said.

The incident happened at about 4:20 a.m. inside the Exclusive Motor Cars at 10534 West Pico Boulevard, in the Cheviot Hills neighborhood.

According to police, responding officers found an unidentified 45-year-old inside a running vehicle in the closed showroom. They said the car had been running for some time.

Both police and firefighters worked to enter the business, remove the man and vent the gas from inside.

LAFD Battalion Chief Kevin Pearson said first responders indicated an "extremely high" level of carbon monoxide in the building.

During the rescue, four officers and one firefighter suffered carbon monoxide poisoning and were, along with the victim, hospitalized in unknown conditions.

Firefighters said the man was likely trying to kill himself.