VANCOUVER, Wash. — The building that formerly housed Joe's Crab Shack in Vancouver was damaged in a fire on Monday morning. No injuries were reported.
The waterfront restaurant to the east of the Interstate Bridge was a Vancouver mainstay until it closed permanently in 2020 due to challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to The Columbian. The restaurant is no longer listed on the parent company's locator webpage.
Fire crews were dispatched at about 5:40 a.m. Monday and arrived about five minutes later to find the fire both outside the building and spreading inside, according to a news release from the Vancouver Fire Department.
The crews stretched several hose lines to fight the fire and shut down Columbia Way to extend a large diameter hose from a fire hydrant across the road. The closure was expected to last until about 8 a.m., the fire department said.
The fire was knocked back after about 10 minutes, according to the news release, but wasn't brought fully under control until about 50 minutes after the firefighters arrived. The building's sprinkler system was activated and helped bring the blaze under control.
About 20 firefighters were on the scene, along with the Vancouver Fire Marshal's Office, which will investigate the cause of the fire. The department's fire boat was also dispatched to help from the river, but was ultimately not needed.
The news release did not mention the extent of the damage to the building, but an included photo showed what appeared to be a heavily burned interior wall and doorway.
