Easter brunch at a longstanding restaurant in suburban Libertyville was disrupted when a fire ignited at a buffet table, forcing hundreds of customers and employees to evacuate.
The fire was reported at around 1 p.m. on Sunday at Austin's Saloon, 481 Peterson Rd. According to the Libertyville Fire Department, firefighters responded to the scene and found smoke pouring out of the building as well as a possible fire in the bar area.
While the flames were extinguished by the building's sprinkler system, heavy smoke persisted following the fire. One person was transported to Advocate Condell Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, officials said.
Three others suffered smoke inhalation and were treated by paramedics on the scene.
According to the restaurant's owner, a malfunction occurred at a 40-foot-long buffet table with propane tanks underneath. Flames shot around 7 to 8 feet in the air, burning the ceiling and table area. Smoke subsequently filled the building, causing patrons to run from the structure.
John Coyne was near the table when the tank ignited, and promptly ran to help his party of 10 get out the door safely.
"Just flames from the table up to the ceiling, 7 to 8 feet high," he said. " I’m like 'woah.' I got upstairs to get my family. The alarm started going off."
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Mark Khayat, the owner of Austin's Saloon, said staff opened doors and windows to help people exit safely.
"The staff I talked to said it was like a flamethrower, they were able to bring people out show them the exit, the kitchen door, every door we had we got people out," he said. "There were 500-600 people in the building at the time and we got everybody out safely."
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The restaurant sustained an unknown amount of fire, smoke and water damage. The Libertyville Fire Department was assisted at the scene by 13 other suburban fire departments, officials stated.
A cause hadn't been determined as of Sunday evening.
Austin's released the following statement regarding the fire:
"Today, March 31, Easter Sunday a fire broke out during our annual brunch. Our most sincere apologies go out to the families who were affected by the unexpected event that occurred.
We feel a tremendous amount of sorrow that your holiday was ruined & we also feel an even bigger amount of gratitude that everyone got out of the building safely. We’re proud to have a community that helps others while they’re seeking help for themselves.
We are also so proud of our staff for remained calm, quick reacting & helpful to guide guests to exit safely. Thank you to the first responders in Libertyville & surrounding areas for coming so quickly & controlling the spread of the fire.
We are going to move quickly to get our doors back open to see you all again in the very near future. And thank you to our community for checking in on us, offering help, support & prayers. Again, we are so very sorry that this accident happened today."
