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Firefighters battle a blaze in The Bike Palace bicycle shop in San Pedro on Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (Photo by Raphael Richardson, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n
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A firefighter runs with a rotary saw as a fire tears through The Bike Palace bicycle shop in San Pedro on Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (Photo by Raphael Richardson, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n
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Firefighters battle a blaze in The Bike Palace bicycle shop in San Pedro on Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (Photo by Raphael Richardson, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n
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Bicycles burn as firefighters battle a blaze in The Bike Palace bicycle shop in San Pedro on Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (Photo by Raphael Richardson, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n
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Firefighters battle a blaze in The Bike Palace bicycle shop in San Pedro on Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (Photo by Raphael Richardson, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n
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Firefighters battle a blaze in The Bike Palace bicycle shop in San Pedro on Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025. (Photo by Raphael Richardson, Contributing Photographer)\n<\/p>\n
Expand<\/a><\/p>\n The Bike Palace, a San Pedro mainstay for more than 50 years, was the only place some locals would go to buy a new bike.<\/p>\n But now, it is boarded up.<\/p>\n That\u2019s because it was damaged during a devastating, fast-moving fire that exploded around 9 p.m. on Dec. 23 and also burned at least one other neighboring business\u00a0in the 1600 block of South Pacific Avenue.<\/p>\n The Bike Palace structure, according to owner Tony Jabuka, was built in 1925 and was originally the home of a Buick dealer, San Pedro Motors.<\/p>\n An investigation into what caused the blaze is ongoing, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesperson Lindsey Lantz. Per protocol, the fire has been referred to the arson unit but what caused the conflagration remains unknown, Lantz said on Wednesday, Dec. 31.<\/p>\n But regardless of what caused the fire, one thing is certain: It caused \u201cheavy damage\u201d to The Bike Palace.<\/p>\n Los Angeles firefighters battled the blaze for two hours<\/a> according to the official LAFD release. They managed to save the majority of another business, International Motors.<\/p>\n The flames exploded through the roof of the connected single-story commercial structure in the 1600 block of South Pacific Avenue, LAFD said in a Thursday, Dec. 24, press release.<\/p>\n LAFD Assistant Chief Paul Pham, the incident commander, officially declared the fire out at 11:02 p.m. Dec. 23, two hours after the initial dispatch, the press release said. There were no reported injuries to firefighters or civilians.<\/p>\n But there were at least 30 lithium-ion batteries at The Bike Palace, which required specialized handling and monitoring to prevent hazardous reignition, LAFD said.<\/p>\n As the shock still wears off, and insurance and myriad other issues are being navigated by Jabuka in the week since the blaze, efforts have launched to assist in the recovery.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have decent insurance,\u201d he said in a Wednesday phone interview.<\/p>\n The days since the fire have been filled with sorting through insurance and other complex issues related to the aftermath of the blaze, Jabuka said, and he\u2019s assembled a team to help with all of that.<\/p>\n Some 10 to 15 bikes had been on order for Christmas, Jabuka said. But because of the fire, they weren\u2019t delivered. A collection of sports memorabilia that displayed on the store\u2019s wall was also destroyed.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel so bad for my customers,\u201d Jabuka said. \u201cI\u2019m making a list and I wish it had been one day later so we could have delivered (the bikes for Christmas).<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re working through all of that now.\u201d<\/p>\n The San Pedro Chamber of Commerce has asked the Harbor Area Business Source Center, a free service for business owners or start-ups in Los Angeles, for funding help and assistance through the center\u2019s programs.<\/p>\n