Washington Street Abandoned Warehouse

The Fire

Multiple fire crews from the Kern County Fire Department and the Bakersfield Fire Department responded to a two-alarm fire at an abandoned warehouse at 99 Washington Street in East Bakersfield. The warehouse was approximately 30,000 square feet and was filled with plastic materials — large bales of plastic recycling material stacked floor to ceiling — contributing to intense heat and smoke. The heat was sufficient to buckle and collapse the building's metal framework.

The fire spread to a neighboring SA Recycling (scrap metal yard) facility before being contained. Eyewitness social media posts described it as "a warehouse right next to SA Recycling that then jumped to SA Recycling." The site is also in proximity to Central Metal and Recycling Center. Kern County Fire Department spokesman Jonathan Drucker confirmed the fire contained "large quantities of plastic recycling that are in big bales." No injuries were reported.

As of the afternoon of April 11, firefighters said they expected to be battling the flames throughout the rest of the night.

Cause

Cause remains under investigation as of April 16, 2026. No arson determination has been made and no suspects have been identified for this fire. Fire officials have not released the causes of the two previous fires at the site either.

The KCFD does have an active arson investigation page for a prior fire at Washington Street from November 9, 2024 — seeking to identify "two persons of interest" in that earlier blaze. That investigation is separate from the April 11, 2026 fire.

Ownership & Operations

The property — a ~10-acre "notorious warehouse compound" comprising multiple metal buildings at 99 and 120 Washington Street — is owned by Big Washington LLC. The company acquired the warehouses from CalCot (a local cotton cooperative) in 2017. The billing address for Big Washington LLC is a UPS Store in Pacific Palisades, California. Very little public information is available about the company. The city has been unable to reach the property owner.

The property was listed for sale earlier in 2026 for approximately $10 million on the commercial real estate website LoopNet.

The buildings previously had sprinklers and proper fencing to minimize fire risks; both have since been removed.

A City of Bakersfield spokesperson stated: "The City is currently evaluating its abatement options regarding this property, including soliciting bids for demolition."

Repeat Fire History

This is at minimum the fourth fire at this compound. Confirmed prior incidents include:

• May 30, 2024 — two-alarm fire; part of the building collapsed; KCFD incident #2423019
• November 9, 2024 — two-alarm fire; KCFD opened arson investigation, sought two persons of interest
• January 2025 — fire at the compound (referenced in KGET/Yahoo reporting)
• April 11, 2026 — this incident (the third fire in approximately one year)
• April 16, 2026 — a fourth fire at the same location, reported by TurnTo23; cause also under investigation

The repeat-fire history is consistent with either chronic fire safety failures (combustible materials, no sprinklers, unsecured abandoned structure) or possible intentional targeting — but no official arson determination has been made for any of the fires at this address.

City Council Member Andrae Gonzalez stated: "We have to make sure that property owners are properly maintaining these sites, and that we need to know what buildings are vacant."

Patrick Murray, owner of Western Valve, Inc. — located directly north of the property — expressed ongoing frustration: "We'd hope this property eventually gets sold to somebody that can actually demolish these old cotton buildings and turn it into a real industrial park." Murray said he worries daily about fires at the adjacent structures, as each one forces shutdowns of his business and poses danger to his workers.

Context: Part of April 2026 Warehouse Fire Cluster

This was the fifth fire in a cluster of six significant warehouse fires across the United States in five days (April 7–11, 2026):

• April 7: Kimberly-Clark Distribution Center, Ontario, CA (confirmed arson — wage motive)
• April 8: Amazon, West Jefferson, OH (solar panels, not arson)
• April 9: Chemical warehouse, Newark, NJ (under investigation)
• April 10: Lumberyard warehouse, College Point, Queens, NY (under investigation)
• April 11: Abandoned warehouse, 99 Washington St., Bakersfield, CA (this incident)

The 23ABC News X account confirmed: "Firefighters are battling an active fire at 99 Washington St. in East Bakersfield. The fire was reported at 2:06 p.m. and the cause remains unknown."

Labor Connection

No labor connection has been reported or suggested by investigators. The property is an abandoned warehouse with no active workforce. The Bakersfield Arson Unit (part of the Bakersfield Fire Department) has been increasingly stretched — the department investigated over 500 fires in the first 10 months of 2024, with 287 determined arson; by early 2026 there were nearly 200 reported arson fires in the city, leading to calls for more investigators. This general context does not establish a labor motive for this specific incident.

Social Media Reaction

This fire was included in several social media roundup posts that circulated during the April 7–13, 2026 cluster period, grouping it with other warehouse fires in a narrative of labor-motivated arson. No specific claim of labor motive for the Bakersfield fire has been identified on social media or in news coverage. The proximity to the Kimberly-Clark arson (April 7) contributed to online conflation.