Firefighters extinguish massive blaze at 2 apartment buildings in Westlake; no injuries

WESTLAKE, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Firefighters extinguished a massive fire that erupted early Thursday morning at an apartment building and spread to another in the Westlake District.

The inferno started at 2:11 a.m. and initially burned a four-story structure. A second building was subsequently involved in flames. Both structures were vacant.

"A little old lady come knocking on my door -- 'Fire, fire, fire!'" said area resident Carey Campbell. "She saved our lives. She saved all of us. It's too close for comfort."

About 160 firefighters responded to the scene and initially took a defensive approach before knocking down the blaze in just under 90 minutes, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. No injuries were reported.

A lack of windy conditions helped prevent the flames from spreading further.

"It would've added to our problems -- we would've had definitely additional exposure problems," said LAFD Chief Ralph Terrazas. "We're very fortunate in the city of L.A. to have a very robust fire department."

Fire officials said 50 patients at the nearby Mid-Wilshire Convalescent Hospital were safe after being evacuated.

"Oh God, my staff went crazy," said Alfred Jones, the facility's manager. "But the fire department next door was there just instantly."

LAFD arson investigators responded to the scene of the incident, whose cause was not immediately known.