GAINESVILLE - Investigators cite careless smoking as the cause of a fire that destroyed a Thompson Bridge Road restaurant, Saturday afternoon.
Gainesville Fire Chief Jon Canada said more than two dozen firefighters were dispatched to the Long John Silvers restaurant to fight the blaze which broke out around 2:00 p.m.
Two workers and one customer in the restaurant were able to escape with no injuries.
Jason Moore,a cook at Long John Silver's, said he was on a bathroom break when the fire started.
"All of a sudden, I just saw smoke coming through the ceiling and my manager come and knocked on the door and said 'there's a fire,'" said Moore.
Canada said the workers told firefighters one customer was in the store, but the customer left the building.
Invesigators say that an improperly discarded cigarette smoldered through the exterior wall and continued up to the attic area. Canada says that the fire probably smoldered for a long while before smoke was noticed coming from the eaves.
Damage estimates are still pending in the case.
Check back for details on this developing story.
Thursday
June 5th, 2025
3:14PM
