Three veteran officers with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) have been killed in an explosion at a law enforcement training facility in East Los Angeles, officials have confirmed.
The deadly blast occurred at approximately 07:30 local time (15:30 BST) on Friday at the Biscailuz Center Academy Training facility, which houses the department’s Special Enforcement Bureau and Arson Explosives Detail, including the bomb squad.
While the cause of the explosion remains under investigation, LASD Sheriff Robert Luna described the incident as “isolated”, and said there were no other injuries.
The three officers, all members of the department’s Arson Explosives Detail, were described by Sheriff Luna as “fantastic experts” with between 19 and 33 years of service.
“This is the largest loss of life in a single incident for our department since its founding in 1857,” Luna said. “We have to go back and investigate what happened from the very beginning.”
Authorities have not released the names of the deceased, stating that next-of-kin notifications are still under way.
Preliminary reports suggest the officers were working to render a grenade safe when it detonated. According to CBS, the bomb squad had collected at least one grenade from a garage in Santa Monica on Thursday, which was transported to the training facility on Friday. It was during this process, sources said, that the explosion occurred in the parking lot of the Special Enforcement Bureau.
Federal authorities, including the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), are assisting with the ongoing investigation.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi called the incident “horrific”, confirming that federal agents are “working to learn more”.
The facility and surrounding area were swiftly evacuated and sealed off for safety and investigative purposes.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has been briefed and is “closely monitoring the situation”, his office stated on social media platform X, adding that state assistance had been offered.
Kathryn Barger, Chief of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, also expressed her condolences: “My heart is heavy, and my thoughts are with the brave men and women of the Sheriff’s Department during this difficult time.”
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