About 50 Fresno firefighters battled a blaze in Chinatown, where heavy smoke and flames engulfed a historic building

By Anthony Galaviz
The Fresno Bee

FRESNO, Calif. — A two-alarm fire broke out Sunday morning in downtown Fresno, destroying a historic building in Chinatown’s China Alley that featured a prominent mural dedicated to California’s high-speed rail.

The Fresno Fire Department responded to reports of a blaze shortly after 9:30 a.m. at 1528 Tulare St.

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Upon arrival, firefighters encountered heavy smoke and flames pouring from the structure.

According to Battalion Chief Keola Park, approximately 50 firefighters battled the fire, positioning engines to the north and south of the scene. Ladder trucks were deployed to help contain embers drifting downwind and to prevent the flames from spreading.

One person was forced to jump from a second-floor window to escape the fire, Park said. The person was taken to the hospital, but their condition is unknown.

The Central Fish Market, located nearby, was not affected by the blaze.

Park said the building was vacant and boarded up.

“However, we have responded here numerous times to fires, so the building was compromised and unsafe,” Park said.

PG&E responded quickly to shut off power supplies, reducing the risk to neighboring structures and allowing firefighters to extinguish the flames.

“We had our crews with additional landlines monitoring and putting hotspots out,” Park said.

Crews are expected to remain at the scene for several hours.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

High-speed mural painting project

In 2022, The Fresno Bee profiled a muralist who, in cooperation with the Fresno Arts Council and the California High-Speed Rail Authority, painted a mural depicting a train and the state of California on the rear of the building along China Alley.

Augie Blancas, an information officer for the High-Speed Rail Authority, praised the location of the mural at the time.

The fire occurred just steps from the Tulare Street underpass construction zone, which had opened in late July.

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