A devastating fire that ripped through Whitehall Friday, destroying businesses in the town's main artery, originated in the back of the Legion Street Grill near a malfunctioning freezer, the attorney general's office announced Tuesday.
There were several freezers in the back of the restaurant and an investigation is still being conducted into whether the fire originated from the plug to the outlet or from a malfunctioning freezer, public information officer Judy Beck said.
Reports that the fire originated from the freezer are premature, Beck said. A formal report will be released next week, she added.
State Fire Marshal Pat Clinch officially wrapped up his investigation on Monday.
The blaze destroyed Cottage Floral and Gifts, The Mint Bar, Legion Street Grill and D-D Taxes. Whitehall Drug suffered significant damage and several other smaller businesses were wiped out.
Around 20 jobs were lost to the blaze.
(From March 9, 2009)
The investigation into the cause of an explosion and fire that destroyed several buildings and businesses in Whitehall last week wrapped up Monday.
The official cause of the fire will be released Tuesday or Wednesday by the attorney general's office, State Fire Marshal Pat Clinch said.
The Friday blaze that ripped through the heart of the business district, destroying a handful of businesses and leaving several people without jobs, most likely originated in the back corner of the Legion Street Grill or in the DD Tax Shop, Whitehall Fire Chief Rick Strauss said.
The blaze destroyed Cottage Floral and Gifts, The Mint Bar, Legion Street Grill and DD Taxes.
Whitehall Drug suffered significant smoke damage, however the historic Star Theater remained relatively unscathed. Several other smaller businesses housed in the buildings were wiped out, including WE Dust Control, Season's Antiques and a massage business. More than 20 jobs were lost to the fire.
While the town is taking positive steps forward, getting through the difficult time will be a challenge for Whitehall, Mayor Terry Ross said.
"We're working with the state through the job service for the employees that are displaced right now to try to keep them going as we try to get all five businesses rebuilt. In a small town like Whitehall, it's a big hit. There's probably 20, 25 people out of work now and that's a big part of our workforce as compared to Bozeman. There's the same amount of people out of work there but in the overall scale of economy, it's a huge hit for Whitehall, huge hit for the town," Ross said.
A town emergency meeting is set for 10 a.m. Tuesday.
The area remains blocked off to traffic.
Officials don't believe fire was connected to a 4.2 magnitude earthquake, centered two miles south of Whitehall that registered about 4:30 a.m. Friday.
Five fire departments responded to the blaze.
(From March 8, 2009)
Business owners and residents of Whitehall returned to the scene of a blaze that engulfed several buildings in the heart of the business district on Saturday.
Whitehall Fire Chief Rick Strauss says four businesses were destroyed; Cottage Floral and Gifts, Legion Street Grill, Mint Bar and DD Taxes. He added that Whitehall Drug suffered significant smoke damage, but the historic Star Theater remained relatively unscathed.
"The fire is pretty much out right now...there may be a hot spot occur occasionally, that's basically why we're here but also to assist fire investigators to do their job" explained Strauss.
He added that the blaze most likely originated in the back corner of the Legion Street Grill or in the DD Tax Shop. Strauss also said that an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire.
Five fire departments responded to the blaze and the area remains blocked off to traffic as fire crews continue mop up efforts.
Officials also told us that they don't believe fire was connected to a 4.2 magnitude earthquake, centered two miles south of Whitehall, that registered about 4:30 Friday morning.
(from March 6, 2009)
Firefighters were still on the scene of a major fire in Whitehall late Friday.
An explosion led to a fire that destroyed four buildings and five or six businesses at the intersection of Legion and Main.
Among those destroyed were the Legion Street Grill, Mint Bar, Floral Cottage and D&D Tax Service.
Whitehall Fire Chief Rick Strauss said crews would stay there all night Friday to watch for hot spots or flare-ups.
Strauss added that Legion Street would remain closed through the night.
The Fire Marshal was on the scene Friday and an investigation is underway to determine the fire's cause.
Several Whitehall businesses were destroyed by a fire that raged through the city's downtown and firefighters worked feverishly Friday afternoon to get the blaze under control.
A two-block radius in the area of West Legion Avenue and North Main Street remains evacuated Friday evening. The entire town was without electricity Friday until shortly before 5:30 p.m.
An explosion led to the fire that destroyed a handful of businesses at the intersection of Legion and Main.
Crews will remain on the scene all night watching for hot spots or flare-ups, Whitehall Fire Chief Rick Strauss said.
Legion Street will remain closed through the night and at least part of the street will remain closed Saturday.
Charred debris filled Main Street in front of some of the burned-out businesses.
Five fire departments responded to the blaze. Most of those returned to their stations Friday night. The fire marshal is on the scene and an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire.
Just over an hour after the fire started, it had gotten into a main power line, which feeds various sources directly from the NorthWestern substation, officials at NorthWestern Energy said.
In order to prevent that line from being damaged along with other equipment, NorthWestern de-energized the line as a precautionary measure, leaving the entire town without power. Crews began working to return the power at 5 p.m.
Businesses that have been destroyed include the Legion Street Grill, Mint Bar, Cottage Floral and D & D Tax Service. Firefighters were working to save several others Friday afternoon.
Several other businesses are engulfed in flames, according to witnesses at the scene.
An official with the Montana Department of Transportation said a call came in at about 11:30 a.m. that several businesses had been lost.
Other businesses in the area include Whitehall Drug, McCloud Realtors and Whitehall Cinemas.
Owners of the Legion Street Grill said the restaurant was just starting to fill up with lunchtime customers when there was an explosion.
"I was doing the inventory, finishing up for taxes, it was 11 o'clock and I heard the explosion. It just knocked me off my chair and I saw smoke and ran up to the restaurant and told (co-owner) Jane (Bowman), ‘We need to get everybody out of the building. I don't know what it was.' It was like instantly," owner Gabi Hall said.
There were 15 to 20 customers in the restaurant at the time of the explosion along with six employees, Hall said. No one was injured.
Flames could be seen 75-feet in the air, one worker in the area said.
A magnitude 4.2 earthquake centered some 12 miles south of Whitehall occurred at about 4:30 a.m. Friday, the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology said. The bureau had no immediate reports of property damage and it is unclear if the two incidents are related.
Whitehall has roughly 1,100 residents.
