Early morning Brentwood fire was arson, investigators say

A fire at a Brentwood town house complex that forced the evacuation of 35 residents Thursday morning was arson, investigators said.

Firefighters responded to the blaze at 12315 West Gorham Avenue at 3:37 a.m. and found a six-unit complex that was under construction ablaze. Five adjacent buildings were evacuated.

Two of them, an apartment complex and a single-family home, suffered significant fire damage, displacing about 10 families, according to Los Angeles Fire Department officials.

The evacuees were to be housed at the Barrington Recreation Center, but all were able to find friends and family to stay with.

A total of 160 firefighters battled the blaze, which was extinguished in a little over 1-1/2 hours. No one was injured. An estimate of the cost of damage was not available.

Fire officials asked that anyone with information about the fire call LAFD's Arson Counter-Terrorism Section at (213) 893-9800.

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-- Abby Sewell

Photo: A firefighter sprays water Thursday on a six-unit townhouse complex under construction in Brentwood that was gutted by an early morning fire. Credit: Al Seib / Los Angeles Times.