East Hampton Fire Marshal: 'Electrical Malfunction' at Rowdy Hall to Blame
Friday's early morning fire that destroyed the back of the J. Crew building and damaged Rowdy Hall started in the outside refrigeration unit behind the restaurant, according to Ken Collum, the East Hampton Village fire marshal.
"Something failed. The electrical unit failed," Mr. Collum said Friday afternoon after finishing his investigation and deeming it "accidental due to equipment malfunction." Outside refrigeration units are common at restaurants for extra storage, he said.
The fire spread from the refrigeration unit to "plastic Dumpsters and laundry bins" behind the restaurant at 10 Main Street, in an alleyway with parking. "Those got going and that's what spread over to the building at 14 Main Street on the outside," Mr. Collum said.
Asked why the damage was worse at the J. Crew building than Rowdy Hall, Mr. Collum pointed to the proximity of the two buildings and the old building construction at 14 Main Street, which dates to the 20th century. "There's only about eight inches of distance between Rowdy Hall and 14 Main Street," he said. Flames from the bins caught the wood shingles on J. Crew's building and with the old wood frame, the fire traveled fast. By today's standards, the building did not meet fire code.
"Fortunately, nobody was injured. They did a real nice stop," Mr. Collum said of the firefighters. East Hampton, Springs, and Amagansett Fire Departments responded to the scene. As previously reported, the fire was extinguished within a half-hour of when the automatic fire alarm from within J. Crew sounded at about 3:20 a.m.
Because the fire was quickly extinguished, Mr. Collum said the building at 14 Main Street is likely salvagable. He said the fire damage extends about 20 or 30 feet into the building, and while there is extensive smoke and water damage, the rest of the building is in "really good shape" structurally.
Rowdy Hall suffered "minimal" exterior fire damage and smoke and water damage inside, Mr. Collum said. The restaurant will be closed at least for the weekend while the full extent of the damage is assessed. He said it would be up to the Department of Health when the restaurant could reopen.
Mr. Collum said there were no violations found. The restaurant at 10 Main Street, part of the Parrish Mews complex owned by Parrish Mews Limited Partners L.L.C., and 14 Main Street, owned by East Hampton 14 Main Street L.L.C., were recently inspected and have current permits, he said.
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