Officials are investigating a fire that burned down five homes in South Los Angeles, leaving a man and a woman in their 60s in the hospital with serious burn injuries, the fire department said Tuesday. 

Los Angeles City Fire Department officials responded to multiple calls of a rubbish fire just before 3:30 a.m. on Tuesday. The blaze ignited a building under construction on all sides, and the fire spread to seven nearby homes, completely burning down five, according to LAFD.

Officials did not say what caused the fire and said the incident is under investigation.

A 66-year-old man and a 64-year-old woman were transported with serious injuries, according to LAFD. A man in his 30s was treated on scene for minor injuries and declined further treatment, officials said. 

According to officials, multiple people were forced to evacuate the area. At least 17 people were displaced due to the fire and were provided assistance from the Red Cross and the city’s emergency management department.

Los Angeles Councilmember Curren Price, who represents the district in South Central Los Angeles, said Tuesday afternoon that his office will assist all families impacted by the fire and that the blaze caused extensive damage to surrounding homes, with three red-tagged as uninhabitable. He added that six addresses were impacted by the fire, with the youngest victim being a one-month-old.

More than 140 firefighters battled 'block-wide' fire

The heat from the "block-wide fire" impacted several power poles in the area, creating additional hazards, LAFD said.

Officials referred to the blaze as a stick fire, meaning it occurred while the building was in the framing stages of construction. Fire officials said the exposed wood creates an intense fire that consumes everything in its path.

More than 140 firefighters battled the fire for more than an hour before knocking it down.

Fire officials said the arson and counter-terrorism section are investigating the incident per protocols. The building under construction was a four-story affordable housing complex, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Recent arson incident in Los Angeles

The blaze comes weeks after a large fire broke out under Interstate 10 near downtown Los Angeles. No injuries were reported, but 16 unhoused people were displaced, officials said. The freeway was closed for several days, disrupting travel for more than 300,000 commuters.

Officials believe the freeway fire was intentionally and maliciously set.

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