BATH

The Southgate Restaurant on Washington Street was destroyed by fire Wednesday night.

The structure fire was reported at 5:45 p.m., drawing crews from at least three neighboring towns to help Bath firefighters get the fire knocked down. That took about an hour from the time the fire was first reported. Bath Fire Department didn’t clear the scene until 9:35 p.m.

The restaurant, located at 510 Washington near the shipyard’s south gate, serves breakfast and lunch. Other than Sunday, it is open from early morning until to 2 p.m. No one was inside the building when the fire broke out. 

According to the fire department, the building is still standing but the interior sustained extensive damage. The state fire marshal’s office responded to investigate the cause and was expected to return Thursday morning.

Firefighters also battled hot, very humid weather and one firefighter was transported to the hospital for heat exhaustion.

News spread of the fire on social media along with community members expressing their sadness and shock, and hopes the owners will rebuild.

Sharing the news of the fire was BIW’s Local S6 union, writing on its Facebook page that, “The men and women that own it and work there have been absolutely wonderful to our members and our community. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.”

dmoore@timesrecord.com