UPDATED: Massive fire at Bassett cosmetics plant sparked by nail polish fumes

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BASSETT >> Fumes from mixing nail polish are blamed for a massive fire that caused nearly $3 million worth of damage to a Bassett cosmetics manufacturing plant Friday, forcing the closure of the factory and left the jobs of more than 30 workers in question, at least for the next several months.
The massive fire burned for more than three hours Friday after erupting shortly after 5 p.m. at LASplash Cosmetics, 13324 E. Valley Boulevard, in the unincorporated county area.
“The cause was ignition from an electric drill while mixing nail polish,” Los Angeles County Fire Department Dispatch Supervisor Melanie Flores said.
Officials estimated the fire caused $1.9 million worth of damage to the building, and 0615_NWS_SGT-L-FIREFOLO1another $1 million in damage to the building’s contents, Flores said.
Workers busily cleared debris and salvaged what they could Sunday afternoon.
In a statement on the company’s Instagram account Saturday, LASplash representatives announced the company has had to shut down.
“We had an unfortunate accident yesterday. Our factory was burnt down. We are thankful that all employees got out safe,” the statement said. “We have to temporarily shut down our operation. Please allow us some time to reorganize. We will be back up and running as soon as we can.”
A company officials at the gutted business Sunday who did not wish to be identified said the LASplash Cosmetics employes between 30 and 50 workers, depending on season.
0615_NWS_SGT-L-FIREFOLO5The business hoped to reopen at a different location within two to three months, he said, adding that much of the irreplaceable items, such as data stored on computer hard drives, appeared to have been spared by the flames. A meeting between company officials and employees to discuss plans for the immediate future was planned Monday.
The company promised to post additional updates when more information is available.
The Instagram message also addressed customers who have placed recent orders.
“For those of you who placed your orders (Friday), we will check the status of all the orders shortly. As soon as our first computer can be up and running, we will be sending notifications out.”
More than 750 people had left comments of support on LaSplash Cosemetic’s 0615_NWS_SGT-L-FIREFOLO6social media post by Sunday afternoon.
The fire sent flames and a thick, black plume of smoke high into the air above Valley Boulevard, and caused traffic to back up throughout the area.
One civilian suffered injuries described as first- and second-degree burns to his legs in the blaze, Flores said. He declined to be hospitalized by ambulance, electing instead to seek treatment on his own.
As is standard procedure with respect to workplace mishaps, the California Department of Industrial Relations Division of Occupational Safety and Health was expected to investigate, officials said.

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