LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A fire gutted a home in the Echo Park area early Friday, killing a young girl and leaving her two relatives in critical condition, authorities said.
The girl, believed to be 10 to 12 years old, was pronounced dead at a hospital.
She and two women, ages 65 and 78, had no pulse and were not breathing when firefighters reached them, city fire spokesman Jim Wells said.
The women were hospitalized in critical condition, fire Battalion Chief Ray Gomez said.
The fire was reported just before 1 a.m. It took 50 firefighters about a half-hour to douse the flames, which destroyed most of the home.
The cause of the fire was under investigation but it was believed to be accidental, authorities said.
Gomez said there was a smoke detector in the home but it had no batteries and was not operating.
