Woman killed in house fire at Panorama City townhouse

One woman died and three others were hospitalized Saturday from a fire at a row of two-story townhomes in Panorama City.

Fire crews from the Los Angeles Fire Department were called to 9201 N. Wakefield Ave., north of Nordoff Street, at 4:36 a.m. where they encountered flames coming from one unit of the two-story building and extending into a second unit, said LAFD spokesman Margaret Stewart.

It took 70 firefighters 43 minutes to extinguish the heavy flames. A 25-year-old man, an 83-year-old woman and another man whose age was not given were taken to hospitals in unknown conditions, said Stewart.

Firefighters were able to prevent the fire from extending to a third attached home.

Per protocol, LAFD arson investigators are responding to the scene to investigate the cause of the fire, Stewart said.