Apartment fire displaces dozens, damages 12 units, Fresno battalion chief says
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- An evening fire damaged a 12-unit Fresno apartment complex and displaced dozens.
- About 40 to 45 firefighters responded and attacked flames moving into the attic.
- No injuries were reported while police assisted with evacuations and safety.
An apartment fire Friday evening displaced dozens of residents and caused extensive damage to a 12-unit apartment complex in Fresno.
Firefighters were dispatched to the scene shortly before 8 p.m. on San Pablo, near Blackstone Avenue, and arrived to find flames burning on exterior balconies at the rear of the complex.
“We saw the backside of the apartments on fire,” Battalion Chief Mike Gilbert said. “It looked like an exterior fire that had started outside, and both first- and second-story balconies were on fire. The fire was moving up into the attic.”
Approximately 40 to 45 firefighters responded to the incident.
Crews discovered the fire had spread through the attic space and into second-story apartments, extending in multiple directions.
Gilbert said firefighters attacked the blaze from inside the structure while Fresno police officers assisted with evacuating residents from units that had not yet been affected by the fire.
No injuries were reported.
“We were able to evacuate everybody safely,” Gilbert said.
The fire caused heavy damage to the second-floor apartments; ceilings collapsed in several units, Gilbert said.
First-floor apartments sustained primarily smoke damage, though one ground-level unit experienced fire damage.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
This story was originally published June 12, 2026 at 9:25 PM.
