Firebaugh Salvadoran restaurant destroyed by fire

FIREBAUGH, Calif. (KFSN) -- A Firebaugh restaurant was destroyed after it went up in flames on Sunday.

The flames erupted at Antojitos Guanacos, a Salvadoran restaurant located near O and 12th streets.

Firefighters say someone inside the restaurant noticed smoke coming out of a light fixture in the hallway.

That's when they alerted staff, and everyone evacuated and called 911.

Firebaugh Fire Chief Michael Molina says the 1940s construction of the older building posed a threat to fire crews putting out the blaze.

That wasn't the only challenge, as 25-mile-per-hour winds on Sunday also fanned the flames.

"It hampered our fire attack because it was pushing our water down the block," explained Chief Molina.

"So, we were constantly having to reposition our equipment to get the fire extinguished,"

Molina says fire crews worked for about seven hours before containing the flames.

This wasn't the first time this building caught on fire.

In 2017, first responders were called to the restaurant to extinguish a fire from inside.

"Nothing compared to this, nothing major, it was just an electrical fire, and they were able to put it down really quick," said Chief Molina.

Erica Villarreal was a customer of the restaurant at the time of that fire.

She's since become the manager at Antojitos Guanacos.

Villarreal says the restaurant has become a second home for her and she's heartbroken for the owner who has put so much hard work into the business.

"He's down at the moment, just very sad, you know," said Villarreal.

"You get to experience being there watching your dreams go down from one moment to another, you know."

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