Vacant Spenard Building Burned

A few minutes after 3:30 a.m. this morning a fire was reported at 1305 W. 36^th Ave., the former Bunny Club Massage Parlor, by nearby callers.  Both callers were reporting heavy fire and smoke visible from the rear of the building.  The building was boarded, believed to be vacant, and posted for sale.

Ten units from the Anchorage Fire Department were dispatched and first arriving units from the Spenard Station a few minutes later reported the building was 60% involved.  Due to the heavy fire involvement, instability of the structure, believed vacancy and nearby exposures it was quickly determined the fire operations would be defensive.  Fire Crews initially worked on protecting the nearby structures and as additional crews arrived their efforts were directed at suppressing the burning structure.  The fire caused the roof at the rear of the structure to partially collapse keeping firefighters on defensive operations until the fire was brought under control about 40 minutes later.

An AFD Fire Investigator responded and the cause of the fire is yet to be determined.  There were no firefighter injuries, and at the time of this report it’s believed there were no civilian casualties.  Damage to the structure is extensive and an estimate was not yet available.