"It's a constant battle," Parker said, noting that during spot inspections he often found materials stacked up in places they shouldn't be -- blocking the inside perimeters of sound stages -- and production trucks and cars blocking access to fire lanes.
In just the last year, city fire officials ordered one major studio to clean up a basement under a sound stage that was piled to the ceiling with boxes and other combustible materials, Parker said.
But overall, local studios are taking fire safety much more seriously now than they did just a few years ago, he said. Not too long ago, sections of many studios resembled junk piles out of "Sanford and Son," he added.
"At times that's how some of the places looked. Junk, trash, garbage, lumber, anything," he said. "They are doing a better job than they used to. There's still room for improvement and it takes commitment on everybody's part."
Officials said they have been aided by tougher state fire laws that spell out minimum basic fire prevention requirements for studios and production facilities. Last year, those rules were expanded to cover not just studios but any production location within the state.
Parker and others noted that some studios were far exceeding the state fire standards. After a fire swept through Paramount Studios in 1983, causing $3 million in damage, officials started using more steel in construction of their sets, he said.
On the Universal back lot, studio officials said they had installed underground fire lines and replaced all the sprinkler systems in their existing sound stages after a fire in 1990.
But Sunday's blaze was sparked by workers using a blow torch on the roof, apparently limiting the effectiveness of sprinklers below, Los Angeles County fire officials have said. The workers stayed for an hour to watch for signs of fire before taking a break. Within 15 minutes of their leaving, however, flames were spreading through the New York street scape.
In Culver City, home to the sprawling Sony Pictures Studios, fire safety officials are assigned to oversee most jobs involving welding or "hot work" and employ thermal imaging equipment and temperature probes to prevent a long-smoldering fire.
"We are very aggressive about it," Sony spokesman Jim Kennedy said.
Culver City Fire Inspector Mike McCormick said the department is also aggressive about inspections and keeping in touch with managers of studio facilities. He visits each of the half-dozen studios at least once a day, including weekends and nights.
