By Daily Press staff
Fire investigators said oil-soaked rags, used for finishing woodwork, were left by construction workers balled up on the floor. Fumes from the rags could not escape and caused them to heat up until they burst into flame.
The two-alarm fire at Fire Station 2 on Hollister Avenue caused an estimated $500,000 in damages to the second floor and attic of the facility.
The new fire house has been under construction for more than a year and was only weeks away from completion at the time of the fire.
The blaze gutted the upstairs rooms and parts of the building’s attic. The large garages used to house the fire trucks suffered only minor smoke and water damage.
All 39 on-duty Santa Monica fire fighters were called to the scene to combat the flames that torched their new home. They were joined by six fire fighters from Los Angeles Fire Department Station 63 in Venice Beach.
Nobody was in the building when the fire broke out, and the fire department did not have any equipment stored at the station.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 26, 2002. Read the original PDF.