Firefighters run into issues while battling Fresno house fire

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Firefighters faced several challenges while battling a house fire in East Central Fresno on Sunday.

A Gallo Corporation security guard called authorities just after 8 a.m. to report smoke coming from a large home on Fowler near Clinton. Firefighters say it was hidden behind oleander bushes, boarded up and surrounded by a large fence with barbed wire at the top.

They also encountered a huge beehive and quickly-rising temperatures. Once crews made it inside the home, they were able to quickly knock down the flames.

A battalion chief with the Fresno Fire Department says it appears Gallo owns the building and is in the process of renovating it.

"Gallo has a 24-hour surveillance of this home. Because of the oleanders that surround it, I'm certain had they not had someone monitoring this house, we would have certainly had a home that would have burned up, and it would have been quite a shame because it looks like this home has some historical significance," said Battalion Chief Rich Cabral.

Fire officials believe improper wiring sparked the fire on the first floor.

The power was supposed to be shut off, so investigators suspect the fire was human caused, but they're still looking into whether it was intentional or accidental.