Fire Forces Evacuation Of Belfry Inne

By: Mary Stanley
Published: 11/05/09

A fire that started in the chimney and spread to the roofline caused $50,000 worth of damage to the Belfry Inne & Bistro on Jarves Street in Sandwich Village yesterday afternoon.

According to Sandwich Fire Department Lieutenant Jason J. Viveiros, a person walking by the historic building noticed the fire at the roof line and called the fire department at 1:15 PM.

“When we got there, people were still inside eating. We pulled the fire alarm and evacuated the building,” he said.

Lieutenant Viveiros said that due to the high cathedral ceilings inside the former church building, people did not immediately notice the smell of smoke.

“They were very lucky,” he said.

The cause of the fire is still unknown.

Owner of the restaurant, Christopher Wilson said the chimney had very little creosote in it, and he did not know what could have caused the fire.

He has reopened his other restaurant, The Painted Lady, which is next door and was closed for the season, and will serve up the Bistro food there until repairs are completed on the Belfry Inne. He said guests staying at the Belfry Inne have been relocated to the Painted Lady.

Although damage was mostly contained to the roof and chimney, Mr. Wilson said there is a bit of an odor of smoke in some of the rooms and those will have to be cleaned. He is hoping that the Belfry Inne & Bistro will be reopened within a week.