Firefighters confront propane tanks, ammo, fuel containers in Clovis storage fire

Fresno fire fighters dealt with propane tanks, ammunition and fuel containers early Friday when they battled a two-alarm fire at a self-storage facility on Clovis Avenue near Shields.

The blaze erupted on the property about 5:20 a.m., according to Fire Chief Kerri Donis. When the first trucks arrived and assessed the blaze, they called a second alarm that sent more units rumbling to Clovis Avenue Self Storage, where smoke billowed in the pre-dawn sky.

Firefighters were challenged by the presence of the combustibles as they sought to quell the blaze that eventually spread to 22 separate units, Donis said. Twelve of the units were heavily damaged.

To aggressively fight such a blaze, firefighters typically try to remove all items in a unit to be certain that the fire is eradicated. However, the presence of the highly flammable items, including some detonating ammunition, forced the firefighters to move into a defensive position and pour water on the units from ladders.

Hazards firefighters deal with when fighting such fires could be eased if there were sprinklers in individual units, Donis said. However, that is not a requirement in the present fire code. The chief said that issue might be something that could be revisited at some point.

It was unclear at mid-day exactly where the fire erupted. Nor was the dollar value of the damage known. Donis did not have a time as to when those who have property at the site would be able to find out if they sustained a loss.

Northbound traffic on Clovis will likely be slower than normal until mid-afternoon.

This story was originally published January 18, 2019 at 8:58 AM.