Weekend fire damages local restaurant
Thanks to a quick response from the Russellville Fire Department and quick thinking from employees, an afternoon fire at a local restaurant was extinguished before much damage could be done.
According to Capt. Steven Thornton, firefighters responded to a call at 3:14 p.m. on Saturday at Good Springs Fish & More on U.S. 43 in Russellville stating there was a fire in the restaurant’s storage room.
Thornton said Lt. Neil Willis, officer in charge at the scene, and his men were able to contain the fire within minutes thanks to a smart move by Good Springs’ employees.
“When employees discovered the fire in the storage room, they immediately closed the door and called for help,” Thornton said. “This was a smart move because the fire was deprived of oxygen which kept it from spreading to other parts of the building.”
Thornton said the business was in operation at the time so employees and customers had to be evacuated.
The main room of the restaurant suffered minimal smoke damage, but Thornton said patrons probably wouldn’t even be able to notice it.
“They closed down the restaurant Saturday night until the health department could come and give them the ok to re-open,” Thornton said. “The health department did their inspection Saturday night and Good Springs was able to re-open for business Sunday morning.”
Russellville Fire Chief Joe Mansell said this is a prime example of the kind of positive outcome that is possible when people are properly educated about fire safety.
“These employees definitely knew what to do by shutting the door and keeping the fire contained in the one room,” Mansell said. “Just the simple act of shutting that door so the fire’s air supply was limited saved considerable damage to the rest of the building.
“The guys also did a good job of getting in there and getting the fire under control,” Mansell added. “Their quick response minimized the impact to the business and they only had to close down for one evening.”
Officials said they were able to determine the fire began in the storage room after some materials were placed on top of an appliance. After the appliance got hot, the materials caught fire.
The fire is being ruled as accidental.
