XENIA — Firefighters worked to put out a fire at a Xenia restaurant on Thursday afternoon.
Firefighters were called to Los Mariachis of Detroit Street around 2:10 p.m. on reports of a dumpster fire. When they got to the scene, crews found that the fire was against the building, according to Xenia Fire Chief Ken Riggsby.
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As reported on News Center 7 at 6:00, our crew learned the fire actually started when a large freezer caught fire and then spread to the attic of the building.
Witnesses recalled seeing smoke pouring out of the building as they were walking their dog.
“We’re really worried,” Bill Russell said.
Two people were taken to the hospital for evaluation. One was a manager of the restaurant and the other was a firefighter who was injured after falling at the scene.
Riggsby said the pace at which the fire was spreading prompted them to put out a second alarm for the fire.
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“It was how fast the fire was spreading,” Riggsby said. “The goal is, obviously, to protect property, and we had an injury early on, so we went ahead and did that second alarm, just to make sure we had the proper equipment here to cover what we had.”
While the amount of damage done by the fire is currently unknown, Riggsby believes that it can be repaired.
The fire remains under investigation. The restaurant is temporarily closed.