The cause of a fire that destroyed Kotzebue’s Uutuku restaurant is unknown, according to an investigation from the Alaska State Fire Marshal Office. The official cause of the June 2 fire is “undetermined.”
But, an incident report obtained by KOTZ points to electrical issues.
According to the report, the fire broke out before 5:30 a.m. that morning. The sole occupant – an employee living in an upstairs apartment– was playing video games with his headphones on when he first smelled smoke. Downstairs, he saw smoke filling the first floor before he evacuated and called 911.
Kotzebue police arrived and confirmed the building was clear before Kotzebue volunteer firefighters arrived and put out the fire, according to the report. The department said the structure was a total loss.
Deputy Fire Marshal Nathan Rocheleau flew in from Anchorage the next day to conduct an investigation, the report said. He wrote that the fire likely originated in a storage and food prep area near the kitchen close to the electric pizza oven and a commercial dough mixer. He said in the report that the area saw the most damage. However, because most of the structure had collapsed, it was impossible to pinpoint a specific origin of the fire, he wrote.
Both the restaurant’s owner and employee told investigators that circuit breakers would trip when multiple appliances ran at the same time – something staff had been trying to get an electrician to fix.
Investigators ruled out arson as a cause of the fire. The roughly 5,000-square-foot building was destroyed, with damages estimated at more than $1 million. The owner told investigators the property was insured though at the time of the interview he hadn’t filed a claim.
The restaurant’s owner and the employee who reported the fire did not respond to a request for comment from KOTZ News.
