Fire investigators said a device used to cook corn is
responsible for starting a fire that destroyed Hollister’s Kentucky
Fried Chicken on Tuesday.
With the help of an arson investigator, the Hollister Fire
Department pinpointed what they believe was the cause of the large
late night fire
– a corn cooker.
Fire investigators said a device used to cook corn is responsible for starting a fire that destroyed Hollister’s Kentucky Fried Chicken on Tuesday.
With the help of an arson investigator, the Hollister Fire Department pinpointed what they believe was the cause of the large late night fire – a corn cooker.
The device, which is used to boil corn on the cob, was accidentally left on after employees cleaned up and went home for the evening, Hollister Fire Chief Bill Garringer said.
“The heating element was left on all night and it boiled out the remainder of the water in the pan,” Garringer said.
Upon further examination of the charred remains of the corn cooking device, investigators said it appears after the device boiled off any remaining water inside, it then superheated the pan and eventually touched off the fire, Garringer said.
“All of the employees we spoke to assured us that all of the cooking devices had been turned off. But when we examined the kitchen we found the heating unit and the switch was in the on position,” Garringer said.
He said the department is simply being thorough in its investigation of the fire.
The 10:45 p.m. blaze that gutted the longtime fast food restaurant was immediately recognized as a problem by firefighters as they drove up on the scene Tuesday.
“When we got here there were flames showing from the area of one of the friers and smoke was puffing out of all of the eaves of the entire building which means it had probably been burning for a little while,” Garringer said.
It took four fire engines, a ladder truck and 30 firefighters from Hollister, San Benito County and the San Juan Bautista Volunteer Fire Department nearly five hours to get the blaze under control.
Officials said they were a little surprised to find that the cause of the fire was mechanical in nature because they said the restaurant has a good safety record.
“They have a good program here with a regular contract from a crew of professionals who come in and steam clean their duct work every six months,” Garringer said.
He applauded the efforts of his personnel and all the firefighters who pitched in to help put out the blaze that could be seen for several miles.
“This was a very tough fire to put out because this is an old building that was remodeled from a vegetable stand to a bar and restaurant and then to a Kentucky Fried Chicken. So there are three different ceilings in this building, so we had a very tough time penetrating the ceiling to get the fire out,” Garringer said. “It was just a very tough fire to get our hands around.”
Part owner and franchise consultant, Jim Thornton, said he was on his way back home from Salinas when he learned about the fire. He said at first he tried to stay optimistic about the situation.
“At first I thought maybe we had a small kitchen fire, but by the time I got here there were four or five trucks and (flames) were going out the roof,” Thornton said.
Despite losing a business that has served the community for nearly 30 years, the owners are not worried as much about their situation as they are about the employees who have lost their jobs because of the fire.
“I’m just worried about the people who work here and who count on us to help them earn a living,” Thornton said.
He said the fire will not keep them out of business.
“We’re going to rebuild it. The question is finding the right location to build the kind of store that will satisfy the KFC Corporation,” Thornton said.
