Body discovered in South LA apartment by firefighters putting out food burning on a stove

Firefighters putting out a blaze at a South Los Angeles apartment building found a body in the bathroom of one unit.

The fire was reported at about 9:15 p.m. Thursday at three-story apartment building at 300 E. Washington Blvd. Flames were not visible from outside.

Once inside, firefighters tracked smoke to one unit, where they found "food on the stove" and no fire. But a search of the unit found the body of one person down on the bathroom floor. That person was pronounced dead at the scene.

The body was described only as an adult, and a name, gender or age was not immediately known, according to LAFD spokeswoman Margaret Stewart, and the cause of death is not considered to be related to the smoke in the unit.

The LAPD and LA County Coroner's Office will take over the death investigation, Stewart said.