DUNBAR, W.Va. — The level of damage from Saturday’s fire at the Cold Spot in Dunbar has made the job of investigators even more difficult.
The blaze leveled the popular watering hole early Saturday morning. Early reports indicated it appeared to have started in the kitchen area, but over the weekend investigators began to lean on another point of origin.
“There’s nothing definite yet, ” said Dunbar Assistant Fire Chief Jason Burger. “I’m not sure if it started in the ceiling, but it seemed like it started in the bar area and not so much the kitchen.”
Burger said they knew when they arrived the chances of saving any part of the building were slim since so much was already engulfed in fire.
“Typically we like to get in there an knock it down,” said Burger. “A couple of guys went in for just a few minutes and realized there wasn’t any chance of stopping this.”
Burger added the buildings construction added to their difficulties on the scene. The building had a basement, much to the surprise of most people who’ve ever been there. The metal roof also contributed to problems.
“Everything inside this building will burn except the metal itself,” said Burger. “Once everything burns underneath, that roof will just fall down and whatever fire happens to be underneath is almost impossible to get to.”
An excavator had to be called into the scene Saturday morning to tear apart the building to enable firemen to douse hidden flames within the debris.
“When there’s that much damage and then you have to call in an excavator, it almost makes it impossible,” Burger said.