Fire at 768 Nostrand by Saint Johns.

I feel sorry for the folks that lived above the store. While there didn't appear to be a lot of fire damage in either the 2nd or 3rd floor apartments, there seems to be a ton of water damage and the firefighters broke out every window. No chance of them getting back in those apartments quickly without a ton of work being done.

The address may have been on the verge of changing hands. Prior to the fire it was (as you point out) a Chinese Restaurant:https://www.grubhub.com/nyc/taste-of-china-on-nostrand/However, very recently a place that planned to sell Felafel and Juice informed the DOH that they would like an inspection in the future:http://www.nychealthratings.com/nycrestapp/restaurantlanding/3/Crown Heights/38848/Paradise+Felafell+Juice+Bar

While such places may have survived a few years ago, they tend not to survive an environment of increasing competition and rents.From what I understand, the place was damaged to the degree that the Felafell (sp) and Juice place will likely get to cancel their new lease and have to find a new prospective location.They likely filed the request for "kitchen inspection" a few weeks before the fire. The site I cite above features slightly old requests.

This is open now as Paradise Felafel Juice Bar. It blends right in with the rest of the Caribbean take out places on Nostrand, with sour sop, fresh juices, patties, sorrel, and roti.  Interesting to see new places like this opening when the existing ones seem under some strain - I wish them all the best!