Fresno firefighters extinguish two fires at the same home in less than 12 hours

Firefighters were called out twice to the same home west of Highway 99 in less than 12 hours after an early morning blaze followed a two-alarm fire the department had recently worked on, said Fresno Fire Department spokesman Hector Vasquez.

The first fire began at the home in the 2200 block of Brunswick Avenue just after 5 p.m. Wednesday. Firefighters arrived to smoke and flames coming from the back of the house. A second alarm was called because of the close proximity of a neighboring home, but it was not damaged and no one was hurt, Vasquez said. The fire was put out in 30 minutes with 27 personnel on scene, Vasquez said.

At 3:16 a.m. Thursday, neighbors reported a second fire in the home, and firefighters arrived to flames in the front of the house, Vasquez said. The residents were not in the area because of the prior fire and there were no injuries, Vasquez said.

The combined damage was so severe, Vasquez said, that investigators believe the home is a total loss.

Vasquez said the department is investigating the cause of the second fire to determine if it was related to the first fire or the result of arson.

This story was originally published December 22, 2016 at 8:52 AM with the headline "Fresno firefighters extinguish two fires at the same home in less than 12 hours."