Blaze at Universal Sparked by a Blow Torch

The fire that burned through a large portion of the Universal Studios Hollywood back lot this past weekend was apparently sparked accidentally by workers who were using heating tools on the set, reported Reuters.

The blaze was battled by more than 400 firefighters late into the night. Nine firefighters and a deputy sheriff suffered minor injuries, the Los Angeles County Fire Chief P. Michael Freemen told reporters at a news conference. The investigation revealed that the blaze was started by a work crew that was applying asphalt shingles to the roof of a building fa?ade, said Reuters.

The shingles were stood over due to company policy for about an hour and left seeing no signs of fire at 3 a.m. About 45 minutes later a security guard saw a fire and notified the fire department. The fire thereafter burned for about 18 hours before it was finally put out. As a result, the theme park was closed by authorities, but reopened to tourists on Monday morning, according to Reuters.

Sunday, while the blaze was being fought, the department was plagued by low water pressure which seemed to come from the demands for water at the time. When it was in full blaze, Freeman said that about 18,000 gallons of water per minute were being poured into it, according to Reuters. There were no TV series or movie productions that will be hampered by the blaze.