HVAC fire clears McDonald’s on Carolina Avenue

Published 10:11 pm Wednesday, November 27, 2019

The Carolina Avenue McDonald’s in Washington was evacuated Wednesday night after smoke filled the restaurant.

At approximately 8:45 p.m., store management contacted Washington Fire-Rescue-EMS, alerting them to the smoke-filled establishment. According to Washington Fire-Rescue-EMS interim chief Doug Bissette, the culprit was a burned-out motor in an HVAC unit.

“There was no real fire in the building,” Bissette said. “No damage. Just one HVAC unit was down.”

Washington Fire-Rescue-EMS, Chocowinity Volunteer Fire Department — 17 firefighters in all — and Washington Police showed up to the scene, Bissette said.

The restaurant was only offline for a little over an hour and has now reopened for business, he said.

It’s the second time this week that Washington Fire-Rescue-EMS has responded to a fire at a local restaurant. Monday, firefighters broke down the back door of La Perla Bakery on Water Street after a passerby noticed smoke coming from the back of the building. A laundry basket engulfed in flames was pulled from the closed bakery before structural damage was done, according to authorities.