Fire damages Buckhead landmark OK Cafe

Fire investigators are working to figure out what caused a fire that damaged a popular Buckhead restaurant Sunday.

The Atlanta Fire Department was called out to OK Cafe on the corner of West Paces Ferry Road and Northside Parkway around 8 a.m.

"Once it started getting bad, we started yelling and screaming, the fire alarm started going off, said General Manager Carlos Alarcon.

Tricia Pridemore and her husband were eating inside the restaurant when the fire started. She says around 50 people were inside when a waiter began running through the restaurant yelling for everyone to leave.

"Anybody who was sitting down they made sure we knew this was not a drill. That we needed to get out now, said Pridemore.

No flames were visible, but there was a burnt smell inside, according to a Pridemore

We started getting smoke, smelling smoke and then they said it was on fire and they told us to evacuate and run out, so we got the customers out and we got out. Everybody got out safe, everybody is fine, said Melissa Rogers, who has been a waitress at the restaurant for 13 years.

AFD says no injuries were reported from the initial fire.

One firefighter was injured on the scene and taken to Atlanta Medical Center. Fire officials say he fell through some rafters while cleanup was underway at the restaurant. He is alert and has no serious injuries.

Alarcon told Channel 2s Steve Gehlbach he believes it started because of an electrical issue with a hot water heater. He told Gehlbach they were having issues with the heater and called an electrician, but quickly called 911 when smoke started building.

Read more:
Fire damages Buckhead landmark OK Cafe