Quick action by restaurant staff leads to rapid response from Irmo Fire District
IRMO, S.C. — A potentially larger and more destructive fire at Tuscany Village may have been averted Sunday afternoon thanks to employees attending a private party at Bistro on the Boulevard.
According to a spokesperson for the restaurant, staff had just begun an employee gathering at Bistro on the Boulevard, located at 1085 Lake Murray Blvd., when they noticed smoke and flames coming from City Nails II, a nail salon located two doors down in the same shopping center.
An electrical fire, believed to have originated in a closet, heavily damaged the nail salon. No one was inside City Nails II at the time of the fire, nor were any occupants present in adjacent businesses, which include Namaste Yoga and Luxe Hair Studio.
The Irmo Fire District arrived “lightning fast,” according to witnesses, and found flames and smoke coming from the salon. Firefighters extinguished the blaze in approximately 10 minutes, although smoke and heat took longer to dissipate, officials said.
Namaste Yoga and Luxe Hair Studio sustained smoke and water damage. Luxe Hair Studio reopened for business Tuesday. Bellacino’s, located in the same shopping center, was not affected by the fire.
A total of eight fire trucks and three chief officers responded to the alarm.
“Because it was a commercial fire and flames were showing, we had additional help,” said Sloane Valentino, operations chief for the Irmo Fire District. “If the fire had been larger, we would have been prepared.”
ServePro Team Cox is handling cleanup and restoration efforts and hopes to have the yoga studio operational soon.
“On most Sundays there is no one in the center,” a Bistro employee said. “This whole place could have been consumed.”
