Fire breaks out Friday afternoon
On Friday a tent caught fire on Ocean Front Walk in Venice
According to the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), the fire was reported around 2:20 p.m. on Friday, November 6 in the area of Sunset Avenue and Ocean Front Walk.
Before LAFD firefighters arrived, however, a Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officer put the fire out with a bucket of water.
An LAFD spokesperson said the department said it is unclear how the fire was started. There is currently no arson investigation.
The fire is the latest fire to break out in a Westside homeless encampment, including on Wednesday, October 28 when a fire was put out on Venice Boulevard under the 405 underpass.
In Venice alone, six such fires were reported in less than a month between September and October.
In the wake of these fires, some of which are believed to be arson, Los Angeles City Council passed a motion calling for a $25,000 reward for information leading to the identification, apprehension and conviction of the person or persons responsible for any acts of arson in Venice starting in September 2020.
According to the motion, reports indicate that the September 14 Rose-Penmar fire, and the September 15 Sunset-Hampton fire were set deliberately. There was also an attempt by someone to light a tent on fire near the Rose-Penmar encampment on September 21, the motion states. Additionally, residents of an encampment on Third Avenue report that some of their tents were doused by gasoline in the early morning hours of September 10.
