Fire damages building at closed Bracken Bird Farm in Redlands

A late-night fire did extensive damage to a building that was part of the shuttered Bracken Bird Farm in Redlands.

No injuries were reported from the fire at the abandoned and unoccupied single-story commercial building at 10797 New Jersey St., city spokesman Carl Baker said.

Firefighters arrived at the scene Friday at 10:30 p.m.

Fifteen firefighters from Redlands were joined by eight from the Loma Linda Fire Department and took two hours to extinguish the fire, with crews at the scene for about four hours, Baker said.

Damage was estimated at $200,000 and cause of the fire was under investigation.

Bracken Bird Farm closed its doors in March 2018 after 45 years of business for the family-owned store.

A retailer and wholesaler, the outlet at its peak shipped 1,200 parakeets a week plus many other birds to pet stores.

On shipping days, they had 5,000 birds at their five-acre facility.

It was also a popular place for people to just visit and look at the vast array of birds.