MOUNTLAKE TERRACE — Fire caused extensive damage to the Red Onion Burgers restaurant in Mountlake Terrace on Monday night.
A passerby reported the fire shortly after 9 p.m. at the restaurant in the 23200 block of 56th Avenue W. The restaurant was closed for the night and no one was inside at the time of the fire.
“The building was filled with smoke and flames were coming from the back portion of the building when the first fire engine arrived,” Snohomish County Fire District 1 spokeswoman Leslie Hynes said.
Fire Station 19 is just a few blocks away.
About 20 firefighters from Fire District 1 and the Lynnwood Fire Department had the fire under control within about 15 minutes, Hynes said. No one was injured.
Most of the fire damage was in the kitchen around the duct work. Firefighters had to pull down portions of the kitchen ceiling to get to flames in the attic space. The cause of the fire was under investigation Tuesday.
The restaurant will remain closed until repairs are complete.
Red Onion Burgers is owned and operated by Mountlake Terrace City Councilman Seaun Richards and his wife, LaRae.
The business sponsors many community activities including an annual Easter egg hunt and Shop With A Cop to help children at Christmas.
Earlier this year, the business raised money for families displaced by a fire at the Taluswood Apartments in Mountlake Terrace. A breast cancer awareness event had been scheduled to take place at the restaurant on Tuesday.
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