JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A fire early Tuesday morning at the Chick-fil-A on Philips Highway at JTB has forced the fast-food restaurant to shut down temporarily.
Jacksonville Fire and Rescue said the fire appeared to be electrical, and the kitchen sustained damage.
The restaurant will be closed for the foreseeable future, according to franchise owner and operator Ben Bryant.
“We will have to have our consultants come down. As you can see, significant damage to our drive-thru. It is unfortunate, but luckily, no one was here, no casualties,” Bryant said. “But it’s definitely going to be a while before we open up for the community again.”
Bryant said many of their guests are more like family.
“Our guests who come and see us every single day; it’s unfortunate that we won’t be able to serve them for a while, but we look forward to getting everything cleaned up and serving our guests soon,” Bryant said.
One of those loyal customers is Bruce Brown, who said he’s glad no one was hurt, but he’s certainly disappointed about the closure.
“It just hurts my heart,” Brown said of the fire damage. “I usually come get my Chick-fil-A biscuit and my lemonade. I’m heartbroken I can’t get that. This is the closest Chick-fil-A where I am. Man, now I got to go further.”
In the meantime, he said the Chick-fil-A community is already rallying behind his team.
“We have a great team and market in Jacksonville, a lot of close friends, so already have people reaching out to help take product on and maybe even take some team members on during this time,” Bryant said. “But very supportive group and very thankful to be part of this market in Jacksonville.”