1:01 p.m. update:
The Ontario Fire Marshal will investigate this morning's fire because of the value of the property damage. The fire chief says "at this time, there is no evidence to support that it's a suspicious fire."
9:16 a.m. original story:
An early-morning fire caused an estimated $750,000 in damage to Studabakers Beachside Bar and Grill.
“It looks pretty bad inside,” Studabakers owner Joe Winacott told OrilliaMatters this morning. “We aren’t allowed to go inside, obviously, but it looks like pretty extensive damage inside. It’s unfortunate.”
Winacott said the popular Mississaga Street East bar had closed at 11 p.m. Sunday. He received a phone call at around 3 a.m. summoning him to the scene. The scene, he said, was devastating. He has invested a lot of money into the bar since he bought it a little over a decade ago.
“We planned renovations next month,” he said, fighting back emotions. “Right now, it’s so early ... but our goal is to get open as fast as we can.”
While the loss is hard to stomach, Winacott said there is a silver lining. “I’m just glad no staff or customers were there and no firefighters got injured,” he said. “Things can be repaired. It’s why we have insurance.”
Orillia Fire Chief Ralph Dominelli said crews arrived on the scene at around 3 a.m. He said the OPP arrived first, responding to a general alarm. “They witnessed heavy smoke coming from the roof area and around the ventilation system,” Dominelli said. “When our guys arrived, they also saw heavy smoke … they had to force entry in the front door.”
Dominelli said it appears the fire “was starved for oxygen” and “didn’t get fully involved.” He noted there was heavy fire damage in the kitchen and bar area, while “the rest of the restaurant has heat and smoke damage.”
Outside the building, only a few broken windows alert passersby to a fire. But, “it’s a total loss inside the building,” said Dominelli, who pegs the damages, at the high end, at about three-quarters of a million dollars.
“Because of the dollar value, we will be calling the Ontario Fire Marshal’s office and a decision will be made if they come or not,” said Dominelli. “We are still doing an initial investigation.”
The fire chief, who said 16 firefighters fought the blaze, expects a decision will be made within a matter of hours if the fire marshal comes to investigate.
As for Winacott, he was already talking to an insurance adjustor on the scene but is also thinking about the future. “It’s a big blow” for the 30 to 40 people that work at Studabakers, he said, noting that number rises to 60 in the summer. “It sounds like this could take a while. I don’t really know how the process works but we want to let our employees know that, hopefully, we will be back.”
