Vacant house catches fire, again. This time, flames leap to neighboring occupied home

A fire in a vacant house spread to a neighboring home Thursday night in southeast Fresno.

Fresno Fire Battalion Chief Randy Reitz said the second alarm fire was called around 9:20 p.m. at Winery and Turner avenues just south of Highway 180 and east of Chestnut Avenue.

Reitz said initial calls sent crews to the wrong side of Highway 180 but crews were still able to arrive in about five minutes.

Flames spread from the vacant house to the adjacent house catching fire to the garage and causing damage to the interior of the second floor of the home, Reitz said. Crews were able to quickly knock down the flames.

The residents of the neighboring home were not present at the time of the fire.

Reitz said this is not the first time the vacant home has caught fire, adding that break-ins are frequent at the home.

No one was injured and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

This story was originally published May 2, 2019 at 11:44 PM.