SPRINGDALE, Ark. — Update: The incident has officially been classified as accidental.
A popular Springdale restaurant suffered extensive damage after a second alarm fire Thursday night.
According to Springdale fire officials, they were called around 9:45 p.m. on Jan. 5 for a report of a fire at Joe’s Italian Grill on East Robinson Avenue.
On-scene fire crews told 5NEWS when they arrived heavy smoke was showing from the building, and it was quickly upgraded to a second-alarm fire calling for additional units.
It took several hours to extinguish the fire and crews worked into the morning hours to make sure hot spots were fully extinguished.
5NEWS crews on the scene counted 12 different fire department vehicles. Smoke was seen coming out of the roof as firefighters worked to put out the flames.
According to the Joe’s Italian Grill website, the restaurant closed at 9 p.m. and would have been closed to guests at the time of the fire.
The Springdale Fire Investigator arrived at the restaurant after the fire. According to officials, the cause is not known and is currently under investigation.
Joe's Italian Grill released the following statement via Facebook following the fire:
"It is with a very heavy heart to share the unfortunate news. That on Jan. 5th late at night a fire broke out at the restaurant. Although the cause of the fire remains unknown at this time. We would like to ultimately put our focus on the good and be optimistic that God allowed our team to be out of there before anything serious had started. We will be moving forward and will keep the progress updated as more information is to be found. I want to also mention the first responders that arrived on scene. From the bottom of our hearts thank you for your amazing service!"
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