Sprinkler system worked, didn’t save Manchester McDonald’s

CLAY COUNTY, Ky. (WTVQ)- Firefighters in Clay County say a sprinkler system some originally thought didn’t work, did actually activate during a fire Sunday morning at a Manchester McDonald’s. It did not keep the fire from destroying the restaurant, though.

“As soon as they got outside, the whole top just lit up,” Lockard’s Creek Fire and Rescue’s Charles Weaver said.

He says fire broke out at the Manchester McDonald’s before the restaurant opened for breakfast Sunday. Three employees inside tried to fight the fire on their own before crews arrived.

Firefighters think it started in the frying area, but they’re still not sure how.

“They have a real big breakfast crowd. If this would have been a couple hours later, this could have been a whole lot different,” Weaver said.

Firefighters had to leave the building eventually because the fire was in the ceiling and it started falling in.

The mayor says the owner had plans for a new building and is making sure employees will have work at another McDonald’s he owns in London until a new location is built.

Some of those employees will now have to drive more than 20 minutes to get to work.

A spokesperson sent this statement from the owner:

“We are thankful that our restaurant was closed at the time of the fire, and no customers were in the restaurant. Our employees who discovered the fire safely exited the restaurant and were not injured. They did everything they could to attempt to extinguish the fire and activated the fire suppression system. We would like to thank our employees for their quick action to ensure the safety of each other, and the firefighters who worked hard to control the situation. The location will be closed for the next several weeks. Our employees will be relocated to our other restaurants. We encourage our patrons to visit our other locations nearby.” – Gist Heinrich, owner-operator