One dead, two injured in explosion caused by homemade explosives

BELL GARDENS, Calif. (NBC, KYMA) - One person was killed and two others were injured in an explosion that may have been caused by homemade explosives.

The blast happened Tuesday just before 6:30 p.m. Pacific in Bell Gardens, where firefighters found the two-story residential building engulfed in flames.

Detectives from the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department Arson and Explosives Detail were called to the scene. They say they found materials for homemade explosives and fireworks.

Neighbors say the complex is often the subject of fireworks complaints.

"We have an issue here with the city with illegal fireworks. It's pretty evident during the fourth of July, some of the stuff that we see up in the sky. So, I don't know. I just, I feel like all the outreach that we do, all the education stuff that we do with the enforcement, I just don't think people really understand how dangerous this stuff can be."

Chief Paul Camacho, Bell Gardens Police Department

Officials say four families, a total of 27 people, have been displaced.