At least 3 dead in reported explosion at Los Angeles County Sheriff's training facility
Three veteran Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies, who specialize in arson and explosives, were killed when military-style ordnance detonated at a training facility on Friday morning, authorities said.The department had picked up two explosives overnight in the L.A. County community of Lakewood and took them back to the department's training facility in East L.A., law enforcement sources told NBC News.One of those two military-style devices exploded, killing the three deputies.It wasn't immediately clear why the explosives had to be moved to the East L.A. locale. The explosives could've been rendered safe at the scene or handled more securely in a bomb-proof container, sources said. The tragic loss of life marked the deadliest day in more than a century-and-a-half of department history, Sheriff Robert Luna said.“This is, unfortunately, the largest loss of life for us as the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department since 1857," he said.Los Angeles County firefighters were dispatched at 7:27 a.m. PDT for an explosion by 1000 N. Eastern Ave. in East L.A., which is near the sheriff department's Eugene Biscailuz Regional Training Academy, 5 miles east of L.A. City Hall, officials said.The blast was "a critical workplace incident" that resulted in "three Department member fatalities," according to a sheriff’s department statement.The victims were not immediately identified, but Sheriff Luna said they had 74 years of collective experience on the force — 19 years, 22 years and 33 years, respectively. They were members of the department's arson and explosives unit, officials said.Luna told reporters the investigation has just started so the cause is still not known."I’ve heard over and over the word 'elite' being used. I think sometime that that term gets overused. But if you’re familiar with our Special Enforcement Bureau, they’re the best of the best," Luna said."They are fantastic experts, and unfortunately, I lost three of them today," he said.When Luna met with reporters at about 11:45 a.m. PDT, Luna said the scene of the deadly incident had only been rendered safe by an LAPD bomb squad within the past 30 minutes."We have to go back investigate what happened from the very beginning and we'll get there. It's just not going to happen this soon," Luna said. "I would be very irresponsible to try and answer a lot of these questions without the information that I need to positively give you facts and I don't have the facts yet."The FBI, L.A. City Fire Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents and the LAPD bomb squad responded to the scene, officials said."The thoughts of all Angelenos are with all of those impacted by this blast," L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement.Hilda Solis, who represents the L.A. County Board of Supervisors district where the blast happened, said she's been in close contact with Sheriff Luna.“I am deeply saddened by the tragic incident that occurred this morning at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Biscailuz Training Academy in East Los Angeles," Supervisor Solis said in a statement. "My heart goes out to the families, friends, and colleagues of the three individuals who lost their lives in what appears to have been a devastating explosion. I am in contact with Sheriff Robert Luna and closely monitoring the situation as we await further details. My thoughts are with all those grieving and the first responders who are on the scene." The L.A. County Sheriff's Department is the nation's largest local sheriff's agency. Deputies patrol L.A. County courthouses, jails, unincorporated communities in the county and provides police services to cities that contract with the department. Friday's blast marks the deadliest law enforcement-related explosion in Southern California in nearly 40 years. LAPD Detective Arleigh McCree and Officer Ronald Ball were killed as they tried to defuse pipe bombs on Feb. 8, 1986 in North Hollywood.Four years ago in South L.A., officers botched the transportation of illegal fireworks, setting off a huge explosion that injured 10 law enforcement officers and seven residents. The blast, which became known locally as the 27th Street Explosion, also damaged 22 homes, 13 businesses and 37 cars and trucks as about 80 people were displaced from their homes. The city paid more than $21 million to settle civil claims.Sheriff Luna said Friday was deadliest day in department history since 1857.On Jan. 23 of that year, Sheriff James Barton and three deputies in his posse were killed by outlaw Juan Flores and his “Las Manillas” gang in what's now San Juan Capistrano in modern day Orange County.
