FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) \u2014\u00a0Fresno Fire continues its investigation following a massive warehouse fire on \u201cL\u201d and Hamilton just after 3 Thursday afternoon in southeast Fresno.<\/p>\n
More than three dozen firefighters attacked the large flames from above and on the ground.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis warehouse was fully involved,\u201d said Josh Sellers with Fresno Fire.<\/p>\n
The giant plume of smoke grew and could be seen across the downtown Fresno skyline as fire crews responded.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile en route, there was already a large column of smoke that was visible,\u201d said Sellers.<\/p>\n
The high temperatures, coupled with overhead power lines, made the firefight uniquely challenging for crews.<\/p>\n
Fresno Fire confirmed that PG&E shut off the power in the area of the flames for safety reasons as fire crews knocked out the flames.<\/p>\n
Fresno Fire rotated its crews to avoid heat exhaustion.<\/p>\n
Smoldering ash was all that remained of the building after the flames, which took crews about an hour to control.<\/p>\n
Carly Ankney is the landlord of the now-burned Fresno Freight building.<\/p>\n
Half of the building rented to the Screamin\u2019 Demons Motorcycle Club was destroyed by the fire, which destroyed decades of history, including memorial patches to former members.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s something you can\u2019t get back. They\u2019re our brothers. We love them with all of our hearts,\u201d said Dennis Lucas, a retired 22-year member of the motorcycle club.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s beyond insurance and a building now. They lost everything,\u201d said Ankney.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll my belongings, all my goods, everything gone,\u201d said Club Treasurer Jose Cisneros.<\/p>\n
He lived in a portion of the clubhouse and learned about the devastating fire by phone while at work.<\/p>\n
Thursday\u2019s fire brought renewed focus on the motorcycle club whose president, 39-year-old Thomas Qualls, was indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with the arson of one of Bobby Salazar\u2019s restaurants.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s one guy, not the whole club,\u201d said Lucas.<\/p>\n
Last August, prosecutors alleged Mexican Restaurateur Bobby Salazar paid Qualls and another person to set fire to his Blackstone Avenue location.<\/p>\n
Qualls has pleaded not guilty.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust because one person did something stupid, you can\u2019t go after the whole people,\u201d said Ackney.<\/p>\n
No injuries were reported in the fire.<\/p>\n
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.<\/p>\n