Fire severely damages cafe behind Richmont Inn in Townsend
By J.J. Kindred | (jj.kindred@thedailytimes.com)
A fire severely damaged a cafe behind the Richmont Inn off Winterberry Lane in Townsend late Sunday evening.
According to Chief Don Stallions of the Townsend Volunteer Fire Department, a call was received that lightning struck the top of a cafe behind the inn, causing the entire structure to catch fire. “We made an interior attack and extinguished the fire,” Stallions said. “It took about 10 to 15 minutes to get a good knockdown on the fire. It was an aggressive attack, but it was not a total loss.”
Stallions estimated the building was at approximately 50 percent damage. “The interior was charred pretty good, but most of the foundation of the building remained and the walls were structurally sound,” he said.
Townsend firefighters were assisted by two tankers from the Blount County Fire Department.
“We had 15 personnel and two trucks of our own,” Stallions said. “Three years ago, we lost a building out there, and that was our battle cry and we weren’t going to let it happen again. Our guys got pretty aggressive.”
