News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Interior fire damage to Crawdaddy’s is limited as Building Owner Peter Metts went through and surveyed the scene Wednesday morning.
While crews successfully contained the fire to the restaurant’s perimeter, Metts said the Broad Street location mostly suffered water and smoke damage.
“Most of the interior of Crawdaddy’s is water from extinguishing the fire outside,” Metts said. “So, interior wise, the office is damaged, totaled. The deck is totaled. Some spots outside are totaled but the interior structure water damage mostly.”
Metts said he has already spoken with restaurant owner Drew Blalock about a plan moving forward. Metts said the popular Cookeville restaurant is indefinitely closed as a restoration crew starts the cleaning process.
“The first thing out of Drew’s mouth was concern for his staff,” Metts said. “This is the Christmas holiday, and what is going to happen to Drew, and what is going to happen with the staff. How long are they going to be out? So, we huddled up and talked about that. We got our game plan together on what we can do to shorten the time as much as possible. So, we will have a restoration crew, hopefully. They are scheduled to show up within the hour. So as soon as they show up, we will once again assess what needs to take place to get Drew back up and running. ”
Crews responded to the scene around 3:30 a.m with the fire reportedly spreading quickly. The situation was contained some three hours later.
Metts said damage could have been much worse, but fire crews acted quickly. The building’s proximity to other structures and age being the main concerns.
“The old buildings when they were originally constructed the floor joist and roof joist pocket in the brick,” Metts said. “They have openings in the brick where they just pocket and rest in the brick. So, their concern was that those pockets, which are openings through the brick, would have allowed fire to creep through into the internal portion of the building. So, they had to go through and check all those kind of things and hosed the space down to contain the fire from creeping into the building, which they did. So, no fire actually got into the building.”
Metts said he first came across the scene while walking his dog near the area that morning.
“I was walking my dog on a normal routine, and this is an area I typically walk by,” Metts said. “When we approached, the fire department basically surrounded the five parcels, and there was a fire in the courtyard of Crawdaddy’s. The deck. The deck area looked like it ignited for an unknown reason at this time. I am sure they will find out, but I have been here since.”
Metts also owns and operates AEI Architect that shares the same building. Metts said offices will be closed for some time with employees working virtually. Metts said the neighboring office only received smoke damage.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, and no injuries were reported.
