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Wednesday fire at Habana restaurant ruled arson
Update: A fire earlier this week at South Congress restaurant Habana has been ruled as arson, an Austin fire spokeswoman said.
The Wednesday fire, which broke out around 6:30 a.m., damaged a shed behind the restaurant and caused smoke damage to the interior of the restaurant, fire officials had said. The damage totaled $40,000, officials said.
No one has been charged in the Habana arson case, and the investigation remains open, said Austin fire spokeswoman Michelle DeCrane. An electrical fire destroyed the restaurant in 2004, forcing it to relocate for nearly two years.
The Wednesday Habana fire also comes nearly three weeks following a fire at another area eatery, the Green Muse Cafe at 519 W. Oltorf St. The cause in that Jan. 6 fire remains undetermined, DeCrane said.
Earlier: Austin firefighters quickly extinguished a fire this morning behind South Congress restaurant Habana, an official said.
The fire, which started shortly before 6 a.m., was limited to a shed behind the restaurant at the 2700 block of South Congress Avenue, said Austin fire Lt. Jim Baker.
At the scene, several units responded to the fire and some nearby lanes were blocked. A fire official at the scene said the fire caused some smoke damage to the interior of the restaurant. Investigators remained at the scene to investigate, an official said.
There were no injuries, Baker said.
This is the restaurant’s second fire at that location. An electrical fire destroyed the business in 2004, forcing it to relocate downtown for nearly two years. It reopened on South Congress Avenue in 2006.
Photo by Alberto Martinez, AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
