A vicious industrial fire in South Gate on Sunday prompted a shelter-in-place order for nearby residents.
“The fire was first reported around 2 p.m., with units arriving in the 18000 block of Industrial Avenue to find a one-story building fully engulfed in flames,” KTLA reports.
“Heavy smoke prompted crews to take a defensive approach to the blaze. The incident was ultimately upgraded to a three-alarm fire response,” it continued.
Watch below:
Firefighters are battling a large industrial fire in South Gate, as thick black smoke and flames rise into the air. AIR7 video shows crews attacking the blaze from the roof and from ladders as they work to gain control of the second-alarm fire.
Read more: https://t.co/Ov4CqjJIh0 pic.twitter.com/xg1yp7orAq
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) May 24, 2026
KTLA shared further:
Officials with the South Gate Police Department issued a shelter-in-place order for residents and businesses around Garfield Avenue and Imperial Highway.
“Bring all people and pets indoors. Remain indoors with doors and windows closed,” the alert stated. “Be prepared to follow law and fire instructions. Call 911 for emergency assistance.”
ADVERTISEMENTIn footage of the blaze obtained by KTLA and posted to Citizen, flames can be seen from the road that appears to be behind the facility where heavy smoke was billowing into the sky while at least some trees near the building had ignited.
People were asked to avoid the area of Gardendale and Industrial streets, while the scene remained active.
“Not to be confused with the crude oil spill in South Los Angeles, or the volatile chemical storage facility in Garden Grove, but there is now a massive industrial fire in South Gate,” one X user wrote.
“This post brought to you by Gavin Newsom, reminding you that California leads the nation in green environmental blah blah blah,” he added.
Not to be confused with the crude oil spill in South Los Angeles, or the volatile chemical storage facility in Garden Grove, but there is now a massive industrial fire in South Gate.
This post brought to you by Gavin Newsom, reminding you that California leads the nation in… https://t.co/1zYr6kqBAT pic.twitter.com/ROCUwwubiV
— Kevin Dalton (@TheKevinDalton) May 24, 2026
Orange County is dealing with the potential explosion of a chemical tank at an aerospace facility, which forced more than 40,000 residents to evacuate.
Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency due to the hazardous situation.
ABC7 Los Angeles has more:
The fire appeared to be near homes, though it was not immediately clear whether any other structures were threatened.
A fire-related power outage affecting nearly 500 customers near the scene began just before 3:30 p.m., according to Southern California Edison.
ADVERTISEMENTThe outage was initially expected to be restored around 5 p.m., according to SCE's website. However, as of 6 p.m. Sunday, customers were still without power.
Fire officials said the blaze was knocked down at 4:19 p.m., though crews remained on scene.
The cause of the fire was not immediately clear, and further information was not available.
