Fire Reportedly Starts In Mattress At USC Dormitory

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Los Angeles firefighters quickly put out a fire in a top floor unit of a dormitory on the University of Southern California campus, authorities said Monday.

The fire was reported at 11:17 p.m. Sunday in a third-story room of the dormitory at 650 W. 35th St., the Los Angeles Fire Department's Brian Humphrey said.

The fire was reportedly in a mattress, Humphrey said. No injuries were reported.

"The smoky fire was held by fire sprinklers," Humphrey said. Twenty arriving firefighters were able to extinguish the remaining fire in less than three minutes.

USC's Department of Public Safety evacuated about 60 people from the building before firefighters arrived, Humphrey said. Five were temporarily displaced.

The cause was "accidental, attributed to carelessness with candles left briefly unattended," he said. The loss was estimated at $2,500, including $1,000 to contents and $1,500 to the structure.

University Public Safety was not available for comment but tweeted that the fire was in the University Residence Hall.