Four New Hampshire Firefighters Injured in Restaurant Fire

CONCORD, N.H. (ConcordPatch.com) – An early Sunday morning blaze has destroyed The Green Martini Restaurant and damaged the eastern part of the historic Endicott Hotel in Downtown Concord.

The fire started sometime before 7:30 a.m., according to Concord Fire Chief Dan Andrus, in the restaurant located in the basement of the apartment complex. The first wave of fire teams arrived not long after the fire struck and a second alarm was then sounded, he said.

Images: Fire Destroys Concord’s Green Martini Restaurant

Andrus said crews attacked the fire in the basement and also the upper floors. The fire extended up through pipes and “other vertical openings,” he said, causing the need for a third alarm. Power was cut off to the entire block. Not long after that, departments from as far away as Laconia and Manchester arrived to help out, he said. A fourth alarm was later declared.

“The goal right now, about 90-minutes into fighting the fire, is to keep a very heavy presence in the building,” he said. “There is fire inside the walls here and we’ve got it get it all opened up and get that fire exposed and out.”

Andrus said it was too early to tell what caused the fire, although he did confirm that it started in the restaurant. At the scene, sprinklers could be seen gushing in the front part of the restaurant, but Andrus would not comment on whether or not they were effective in dousing the flames or limiting the spread of the fire.

“This one is too soon to make that call,” he said.

WMUR reported that four firefighters were taken to Concord Hospital with injuries ranging from back strains to hand and ankle injuries and smoke inhalation. All four were released by Sunday afternoon, the television station said.

Andrus said everyone was successfully evacuated from the building. The apartment complex, which is owned by CATCH Neighborhood Housing, was relatively empty and slated to be renovated. CATCH was scheduled to go before the Concord City Council on Feb. 13, to request a “community revitalization tax relief incentive” package be created for project.