Fire Damages Tampa's 4 Rivers Smokehouse Restaurant

TAMPA, FL - The kitchen area of the 4 Rivers Smokehouse restaurant was severely damaged by fire late Wednesday night. Firefighters responded about 11 p.m. to the restaurant, 623 S. MacDill Ave.

The call initially came in as an automatic fire alarm but was later confirmed by a caller to 911 who saw fire inside the single-story commercial restaurant building. When firefighters arrived, they upgraded the call to a working structure fire due to heavy smoke venting from the building.

Firefighters forced entry into the building but did not locate an active fire. The sprinkler system extinguished most of the flames, firefighters said. The fire was caused by a freezer unit near the fryer area in the kitchen. The freezer was on wheels which allowed firefighters to relocate it to the exterior of the building.

The fire was under control in about 25 minutes. Fire, smoke and water damage to the building is estimated at $200,000. There was no one inside the building at the time and there were no injuries reported. No information was available on when the restaurant will reopen.

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