"It's a disaster": Multiple businesses at total loss after Arlington structure fire

ARLINGTON, Texas - Several Arlington business owners are grappling with a total loss after a 4-alarm fire raged through a building on W. Abrams Street on Monday afternoon.

Arlington structure fire

What we know:

On Monday, August 17, at around 5:45 p.m., the Arlington Fire Department responded to a multi-alarm structure fire in the 2400 block of W. Abram Street.

Firefighters initially fought the blaze from the interior of the Beirut Grill in the building before evacuating. The structure's roof later collapsed due to the intensity of the fire, which was upgraded to a 4-alarm fire.

Arlington Fire brought the fire under control around 7:40 p.m. on Monday.

No injuries were reported. Beirut Grill and other businesses in the building were normally closed on Monday.

80 firefighters responded to the inferno, and the response included assistance from the Pantego Fire Department and AMR Arlington. One firefighter was hospitalized as a result of smoke inhalation in stable condition and was later released.

On Tuesday, Arlington Fire knocked down the remaining exterior walls of the Beirut Grill that posed a potential collapse hazard.

What we don't know:

Arlington Fire is still working to determine the cause of the fire.

Business owners at a loss

What they're saying:

"It's a disaster."

The building that caught fire included the Beirut Grill restaurant and several other businesses. Abbas Fares, who runs Beirut Grill, tells FOX 4's David Sentendrey the restaurant was his livelihood.

Fares moved to the United States from Lebanon and started the restaurant. "This is what I love to do."

Beirut Grill is currently without insurance. The property owner, a business partner with Beirut Grill, tells FOX 4 he forgot to pay the insurance renewal when he was out of the country.

"We don't know what to do. Where to start from," Fares said.

On Monday, Sentendrey spoke to the owners of Folklore Grove Bookstore and Smash Toast, two businesses who appear to be a total loss from the fire.

"A year ago we were renovating and building it up," Kait Thiveaux, who owns Folklore Grove Book Store, said. "A year later, we're watching it burn down."

"We literally have been texting our event director, and things like that, planning ‘Hey, what’s our 1-year anniversary?’" Bobby King, who owns Smash Toast, said. "Now our 1-year anniversary is picking up ashes. It's a different plan than we envisioned for sure."

David Govea, who owns El Gabacho Tex-Mex Grill next to the building, said the situation was hard to take in.

"Man, I just feel so sorry for them."

What you can do:

Beirut Grill has started a GoFundMe to help pay for expenses, which you can find here.