Fire rips through abandoned Banning commercial complex

A fire ripped through a building in an abandoned commercial complex in Banning on Monday, burning half of the building’s units and causing an estimated $700,000 in damage, firefighters reported.

Flames were showing through the roof of a two-story building within the Banning Business Center, located at 649 W. Lincoln St. at 2:20 a.m., said Banning police Sgt. Michael Loader. The flames were out at 4:08 a.m., extinguished by firefighters from Riverside County, San Bernardino County, and the Morongo Fire Department, said Jennifer Fuhrman of the Riverside County Fire Department.

Eight of the complex’s 16 businesses were involved, Fuhrman said, adding that flames extended into a portion of the grass field outside the building.

Other buildings in the abandoned complex have burned before, Sgt. Loader said. Those fires were likely the result of transients trying to get warm or cook.