Cassandra Hemenway
A fire on Main Street in Montpelier on Saturday, Oct. 28, did not appear suspicious, but did damage the Mad Taco restaurant and part of Charlie-Os, according to the Montpelier Fire Department.
Mad Taco had just reopened six days beofre the fire, after having been dealt extensive damage from the July flood, according to Montpelier Fire Department Lt. Nick Bresette.
The fire “does not appear suspicious,” Bresette told The Bridge, and said it was called in at 11:10 p.m., and over 75 firefighters from seven different departments responded. The fire was under control in about 30 minutes, he said, but firefighters “had some extensive overhaul because of the age of the building, and [the fire] got into adjacent property at Charlie-Os. For about three hours we did a bunch of cutting through roofs and walls.”
“Significant fire and water damage has impacted the Mad Taco, as well as the rear of Charlie-O’s. Five tenants from the neighboring building were temporarily displaced. There were no reported injuries,” according to a post on the Montpelier Fire Department’s Facebook page Sunday.
The fire was declared under control around 1 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 29, the post said, adding “There was a fire watch staged on the scene throughout the morning hours.”
Investigators from the Vermont Division of Fire Safety and the Vermont State Police will be releasing a report this week, Bresette said. Results of the investigation were not completed before press time, but Montpelier Fire Department Deputy Chief James Quinn told The Bridge the origin of the fire appeared to be in the back of the kitchen. “But at this point … it’s hard to say,” he said, confirming that “it looks accidental and not suspicious in nature.”
Mutual aid for the structure fire came from the fire departments of Barre City, East Montpelier, Berlin, Northfield, Waterbury, Worcester, Barre Town, Plainfield, and Williamstown, along with assistance from Barre Town EMS, the Montpelier Police Department, and the city government of Montpelier.
