Bigfork Bar Destroyed in Early Morning Blaze
An early morning blaze on Saturday, October 29th destroyed Loggers Restaurant & Bar located just south of Bigfork on State Highway 38. Firefighters were paged out shortly before 5AM and upon their arrival found the west side of the building, which housed a storage area and walk-in coolers, fully involved, with heavy smoke coming from the main part of the building. Firefighters and apparatus from Deer River Fire Department and Balsam Township Fire also responded to the scene.
No one was inside the building at the time, but manager Jennifer Hollinday and her brother were asleep in Hollinday's mobile home which is located only steps from where the fire appeared to have started. The Hollinday's puppy is credited with waking the occupants and alerting them to the fire, probably saving their lives. Firefighters were able to keep the fire from reaching the mobile home, which only received minor damage.
Firefighters were on the scene for over five hours and Highway 38 was shut down during the fire.There were no injuries reported and the exact cause of the blaze has not been released. The building is considered a total loss. The Itasca County Sheriff's Department and Bigfork Ambulance Service also responded to the scene.
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