Lakeview Dominick's Burns Down
By Benjy Lipsman in News on Jun 20, 2005 6:04PM
Around 5:30pm Sunday evening, a fire engulfed the Lakeview Dominick's, located at 3012 N. Broadway. The store was gutted in the 4-alarm blaze but only two minor injuries were reported despite the store being full of shoppers at the time the fire broke out. Dominick's spokeperson Wynona Redmond stated to the media that "A very astute deli worker saw a ball of fire and got on the intercom, even before the alarm sounded." His quick actions likely saved many others from injury.
Officials are still investigating the cause and location where the fire began. Chicagoist has heard reports of the fire starting in the bread aisle, the paper goods aisle and the liquor dept. I'm sure there are enough rumors and speculation to place the starting point just about everywhere in the store -- except for maybe in the product section what with those "Singing in the Rain" veggie sprayers.
While the initial reports seem to rule out arson, the local media is certainly trying to sensationalize the story with that angle by mentioning that a "22-year-old man with a history of mental problems and pyromania [was] reported missing from the All American Nursing Home, at 5448 N. Broadway." There was also supposedly a customer who was angry that his car was towed from the Dominick's lot. So clearly he must have thought torching the store was justified.
When Chicagoist checked out the scene in person around 10pm last night, there were still big crowds watching the Chicago Fire Dept. continue to work at the scene. We heard numerous local residents mourn for their local store -- the only one within walking distance for those who live in the area. They also felt bad for the displaced employees.
While some feared that the Dominick's would be replaced with condos or some other store and leave them without a grocery permanently, Dominick's spokesperson Wynona Redmond said, "there is no reason for us not to rebuild," because the store does good business. Nonetheless, those living in the area will likely have to find someplace else to shop for the next few months. And it looks like Chicagoist will be driving our girlfriend to the grocery store more often now.
Photo via ABC 7