MOUNT WASHINGTON, Ky. --
A well-known Mount Washington restaurant was heavily damaged in a weekend fire.
The restaurant was closed when the fire started, and no one was inside at the time.
The Kettle Creek restaurant is closed on Sundays so employees can spend the day with their families, but owner Josh Spaulding spent the day trying to estimate the damage after a weekend fire.
"This is devastating. I spent six years remodeling, replacing every air conditioner in the place and redoing bars. It's a mess," he said. "A mess to clean up."
The fire was reported around 3:30 a.m. Saturday. When firefighters arrived, flames were coming through the roof.
"By all the investigations, it appears it could be a lightning strike," said Mount Washington Assistant Fire Chief Chuck Minor.
Minor said additional units were called in to assist. It took nearly three hours to put out the fire.
"We have an investigator with the Bullitt County Sheriff's Office that's taking over the arson investigation and cause and determination," he said.
Inside, items were removed from the kitchen, bar and dining room areas. It's still unclear what the owners can save from the damage.
Throughout the weekend, customers showed up not knowing what happened.
"Saturdays are busy. We have a good local clientele. We got all our old guys that come in here and share their stories every day; same ladies that come in for lunch and their families come in every Saturday," Spaulding said. "It's a good group of people we have in here."
Spaulding said he's determined to rebuild and put his 25 employees back to work.
"Everybody, we'll be back for you soon, as soon as we can, serving good food again," he said.
Spaulding said he's considering a temporary location in Mount Washington until the restaurant is reopened.
No one was injured during the fire.
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