A fire destroyed a building in downtown San Bernardino and spread to a nearby strip mall on Monday night, Jan. 13, prompting evacuations.
Crews responded around 11:15 p.m. to the fire near G and Congress streets, where they found the blaze spreading quickly through a large cabinet-manufacturing business with immediate exposure to a nearby strip mall, according to the San Bernardino County Fire Department.
Firefighters evacuated the structures and attacked the fire from inside until it became too dangerous because of the fire’s growth and the compromised structure. The blaze grew to neighboring businesses and an exterior storage area, lighting hundreds of bales of vinyl products on fire.
Firefighters controlled the fire within two hours.
Because of the amount of damage at the cabinet-manufacturing business, an excavator had to take down masonry walls so the structure could be removed. The structure was considered a total loss, the Fire Department said.
While Santa Ana winds are posing fire danger in the Inland Empire, the Fire Department said winds were calm in the area during the fire.
Damage reports were being compiled, and the cause of the fire was under investigation.
