LOS ANGELES — A pre-dawn fire Tuesday badly damaged a building under construction at the nation’s second-largest Mormon temple, and arson investigators were trying to determine the cause. The blaze erupted just after 1 a.m. in West Los Angeles and 48 firefighters doused it within a half-hour, Fire Department spokesman Matt Spence said. Because the blaze occurred on church property, the Fire Department’s special house of worship arson task force was called in to investigate, Spence said. The temple property is patrolled around the clock, but security guards did not indicate they saw any intruders, spokesman Matt Ball said, adding the temple had not received any threats before the fire erupted, "As far as we know, it’s just an unfortunate accident," he said. The 4,000-square-foot building was in the wood framing stage. It is intended to house the Los Angeles Mormon mission president and serve as an administrative welcome center for visitors, Ball said. Much of the framing was charred, but officials were awaiting a full report before determining the extent of the damage, Ball said. Construction will continue, he added, calling the fire "just a little setback." The fire did not damage the existing Los Angeles California Temple, a 257-foot-high building dedicated in 1956, or its 13 acres of grounds. It is the second-largest Mormon temple in the U.S. after the temple in Salt Lake City. The fire erupted exactly two months after an arson fire at a construction site forced dozens of people to flee neighboring homes in nearby Brentwood. Authorities said the pre-dawn fire on Nov. 10 damaged the wood framing for a six-unit townhouse complex. As many as 10 families were displaced. No arrests were made.
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