Updated: Fire shoots through roof at Ricky’s Chicken II

Submitted: 

Stafford County firefighters responded to a commercial building fire at 3619 Jefferson Davis Highway this morning at 8:48 a.m. First arriving units found fire visible from the roof of the Ricky’s Chicken II restaurant. The fire was located within the hood system in the kitchen area and had extended through the metal ductwork up through the roof. Firefighters conducted an aggressive fire attack and brought the fire under control in approximately 15 minutes. There was damage to cooking equipment in the kitchen, the roof of the building and an adjoining office suite. One lane of southbound Jefferson Davis Highway was shut down for a time during fireground operations. 

Firefighters and EMS personnel from Potomac Hills Station 10, Falmouth Station 1, Stafford Station 2, Mountain View Station 4, Aquia Station 9, Berea Station 12, Shelton Shop Station 14, Marine Corps Base Quantico, Prince William County and the City of Fredericksburg responded to the alarm. The Fire Marshals Office investigated the fire and the cause was determined to be accidental and damage is estimated to be $100,000.

Update Saturday, Feb. 18, 2017

The Virginia Department of Health on Nov. 6, 2016 posted this violation found at the restaurant: 

47 – 1570 – Equipment – Good Repair and Proper Adjustment

core
Observation: Mechanically vented hood filters not in good repair or have gaps in between filters.
Correction: Repair or replace hood filters and/or eliminate gaps between filters.

Today, Stafford County Fire Chief Mark Lockhart tells us that problem had been resolved: 

“The Fire Marshals Office followed up on that VDH violation in November and found the issue was corrected. It appears the hood system was not serviced on a quarterly basis as recommended and that may have led to the build-up of creosote in the vent duct above the cooking equipment.”