Vacant Atwater home destroyed in fire

A vacant home in Atwater was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived to the corner house at about noon on Monday, according to CalFire-Merced County officials.

Firefighters did a thorough search of the house at 249 Cedar Avenue, Battalion Chief John Slate said, and found nobody was inside the home during the fire. The flames were contained by 1 p.m., he said.

“The structure is a total loss,” Slate added. He said the house has been vacant for three years.

None of the surrounding houses were damaged by the fire, Slate said, and the cause is under investigation.

This is the second vacant house to catch fire in Merced County within the last week. In the early morning hours of Aug. 27 a two-story home caught on fire at 344 W. 19th St. in Merced.

The house was fenced off at the time of the fire, Merced Fire officials said. Nobody was found inside this house either during the fire, according to officials, and the cause is still under investigation, however officials ruled out electrical causes because all utilities were shut off at the time.

There have been multiple fires at the home in the past, officials said, and neighbors report the house was frequented by homeless people.

This story was originally published September 4, 2017 at 3:09 PM with the headline "Vacant Atwater home destroyed in fire."