Published: February 18, 2008 04:43 am      

Fire damages Ranch House

PALESTINE — An early morning fire damaged a popular restaurant in Old Town Palestine this morning.

A fire broke out in the attic of The Ranch House Restaurant at 305 E. Crawford St. around 1:20 a.m. today, damaging the roof but leaving the building standing.

“When we pulled up, flames were on the roof, on the ridge and on both ends,” Palestine Fire Department battalion chief Mike Pell said. “I was very leery of getting people on the roof because it’s a ‘bowstring’ roof. A lot of firefighters have gotten hurt over the years on those.

“We put a master stream through the hole (in the brick facade front) and it knocked (the fire) down. It gave us the upper hand.”

In addition to using the water cannon on Engine 1 and lines from nearby fire hydrants, firefighters also positioned Tower 1 in a parking lot behind and above the rear of the restaurant as a precaution in case the fire had intensified, Pell said.

“We got real lucky,” Pell said, noting that the dining room suffered mainly water damage. “In the middle of the building the ceiling did burn through.”

The cause of the fire is under investigation by city fire marshal Alan Wilcher.

While the age of the historic building was not immediately available, it had been converted into a steak house restaurant and opened in late September, 1996. Current owner Lannie Dugan had purchased the restaurant in May, 2007.

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Beth Foley may be contacted via e-mail at bfoley@palestineherald.com