the fire in question occurred on the right galley between the cook line and the server line under the pass bar when the food is sitting under the warming lamps. the fire itself wasn't that big, about the size of a fireplace fire but was concealed in the pass bar so no one seen it until the smoke was pouring out from it.
fire and rescue was called and arrived within 2 mins. there was only 1 table in the dining room with someone eating at it and they got out fine. the main thing was smoke and no exposed flame.
the firefighters arrived, evacuated the building and used thermal dectetion to find the heat source. they had to use a sledge hammer to get to where the fire was seeded and it was immediately put out.
right now ihop is closed and expected to be open by this weekend. all employees have off today due to inspectors coming in to determine the source of the fire. the state fire marshal said it "was not arson" and thats was their main concern.
there is alot of smoke and water damage done inside with some of the stainless work messed up due to the firefighters trying to reach the fire itself.
alot of people in the thread have dissed on ihop and its service which i agree does need to be said in some aspects. many people like to accuse and throw some rude remarks concerning how clean it is and such. i can say for a fact the heath department has been called on they a few times over the past months due to assumptions and such but they remain open with nothing critical to shut them down.
there are many other eateries in st. marys county that are far worse then ihop that look outstanding on the outside but its behind the scenes that is god awful. i suggest you read the findings at the health departments website on your local eateries so you know what your getting for sure.