Fire·Historic South-Central
Fire destroys vacant century-old church in South LA
About 180 firefighters battled a fire that destroyed a vacant, century-old church and kept wind-blown embers from igniting 25 nearby homes.
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LOS ANGELES — A fire destroyed a vacant, century-old church in Historic South-Central early Monday, Oct. 12. Firefighters were called at 3:31 a.m. to the two-story wooden building in the 2600 block of South Paloma Street at East 27th Street, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
About 180 firefighters fought the fire from outside the building. Strong winds blew embers toward as many as 25 nearby homes, and crews kept all of them from burning. Power lines also came down in front of the church. The fire was knocked down in 1 hour and 36 minutes. LAPD officers taped off the area after they arrived.
No injuries were reported. The building, formerly Crouch Memorial Pentecostal Church, had burned twice before, in 2013 and 2024. The city has red-tagged it for demolition, and LAFD arson investigators are working to determine the cause.
LAFD asks anyone who saw suspicious activity near 27th and Paloma streets before 3:30 a.m. to call its Arson Investigation Section at (213) 893-9800.
More footage from the scene
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Conner filmed this footage on scene, with LAFD and LAPD present.
