IRWINDALE — A large fire gutted a vacant, stone-built, city-owned house Thursday, officials said.
Passers-by first reported seeing flames emanating from the house along Arrow Highway at Allen Drive just after 6 p.m., Irwindale police Sgt. George Zendejas said.
The home was engulfed in fire, with flames shooting through the roof, when firefighters arrived on-scene, Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Mark Delgado said.
“We could see a large column of smoke probably two miles out,” he said.
A partial roof collapse prompted firefighters to assume a defensive stance as they doused the burning home with water, officials said. The flames were extinguished in about half an hour.
The house sustained major damage, Delgado said, though a dollar-value estimate was not immediately available.
An arson investigator was summoned to the scene to look into the cause of the fire.
There was no electricity connected at the vacant home, Delgado said. Officials were investigating the possibility transients staying inside the vacant home may have caused the blaze.
No injuries were reported to civilians or firefighters, Delgado said.