A high rise building fire in LA saw trapped people escaping from upper floor windows.
The fire was understood to have broken out on the 6th floor of the Barrington Plaza - a 25 storey residential building in the Brentwood area of the city.
Firefighters confirmed eight people were injured - including a three-month old baby.
Both air and ground rescue teams were drafted in with at least a 100 firefighters involved in rescue efforts.
According to Citizen, firefighters say one person has also suffered a cardiac arrest.
Thick smoke could be seen pouring from the building as rescue workers battled to evacuate all trapped inside.
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Firefighters requested police support to aid in evacuating the building, with officers saying smoke and heat is likely to have driven some people to escape through windows.
The LA Fire Department (LAFD) has also deployed a helicopter to the scene and rescue pads were been placed on the ground.
Astonishing footage showed one resident scaling along a building to escape the flames and reach a rescue ladder.
Others took to Twitter to report sounds of an explosion from the building, where it's estimated around 700 people live.
A firefighter at the scene confirmed the LAFD had been tackling an earlier fire nearby in an office block two hours prior.
Firefighters on the earlier scene called in the second blaze after spotting a balcony on fire.
This is the second time the Barrington Plaza has suffered a serious fire in the last 10 years.
High winds up to 40mph hindered efforts to extinguish the flames in both fires.
A helicopter could be seen hovering over the Barrington building as rescue workers were lowered down onto the roof to retrieve residents who had made their way to the top floors.
The helicopter was also seen lowering more oxygen tanks to help firefighters making their way through the building.
Twitter user Rosy Cordero said: "These emergency workers are heroes. Wow, this is a building on fire in Brentwood with people trapped in the residential building. It’s on Wilshire and Stone near Barrington."
Dave Gonzales, a photo journalist at the scene, said: "The floor you are seeing is fully engulfed.
"They are having a hard time getting in there.
"There's massive amounts of smoke coming from that floor as a result of the massive fire going on in that room."
"This is going to go right through the ceiling."
People were advised to stay well clear of the area and those on the grund have been pushed back amid fear the building could partly collapse.
It's not understood the nature of all injuries, however it is expected the number of victims could increase as people remain trapped inside.
Firefighters have called in other fire units to tackle the massive blaze.
Flames appear to have subsided and large parts of the building have been left scorched.
Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas said in a press conference: "Our firefighters did a tremendous job. This is a 25 residential high rise with no sprinklers.
"There was a fire on the sixth floor that spread to the seventh. They (firefighters) went through multiple air bottles before getting to the seat of the fire.
"We also hit it from the outside and between the two methods we are able to achieve a knockdown."
Chief Hogan, Commander of Operations said: "We are doing a floor to floor search throughout the building to ensure nobody needs any more assistance for that
"We have eight people affected by this - one receiving CPR and a three month old child.
"At this time the LAFD and the LAPD being in unified command - our priorities are medical and a complete evacuation of this building."
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