VEEDERSBURG — One person was injured in a fire that destroyed a downtown restaurant Friday.
The blaze started before 5 a.m. at Down on Main Street Diner, 115 N. Main St., said Chief Troy Finley of the Veedersburg Van Buren Volunteer Fire Department.
Three people inside an apartment above the restaurant escaped, but one of the residents suffered minor burns, Finley said. Their names were not released.
The restaurant was closed at the time.
Firefighters spent more than five hours getting the blaze under control, Finley said. Crews were still extinguishing hotspots several hours later.
“It was a challenge getting it knocked down,” Finley said, citing the age of the building.
Fire departments from Attica, Covington, Hillsboro, Mellott and Waynetown were called in to assist.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation, but the flames may have started upstairs, Finley said. He said the building is considered a total loss.
The state fire marshal was at the scene Friday afternoon.
