For the second time in five months, Atlanta firefighters battled flames at the iconic Krispy Kreme in Midtown.
Video posted online Wednesday afternoon showed fire shooting through the roof of the popular doughnut shop that has stood along Ponce de Leon Avenue for nearly six decades.
The Atlanta landmark has been closed since Feb. 10, when a suspected arsonist set fire to the building in the early morning hours, officials said. The flames spread quickly, causing “catastrophic damage” and shutting down the shop indefinitely.
Krispy Kreme vowed to rebuild after February’s fire gutted the building’s interior, but the latest blaze could delay those efforts. The property was still fenced off for ongoing renovations when Wednesday’s fire erupted sometime before 5 p.m.
Atlanta firefighters arrived to find flames and thick gray smoke billowing out of the building’s roof, the department said in a tweet. The fire was quickly extinguished, and the eastbound lanes of Ponce de Leon were shut down as crews investigated.
No injuries were reported, and the exact cause remains under investigation, authorities said. It wasn’t immediately clear if anyone was inside the building at the time.
Authorities released surveillance photos of the arson suspect in February’s fire, but investigators have not announced any arrests in the case. That fire torched the back of the building, charring the doughnut conveyor belt and melting the order counter.
Credit: JOHN SPINK / AJC
Credit: JOHN SPINK / AJC
The shop opened in 1965 on the spot of the old Pig’n Whistle barbecue drive-in and was overhauled in 2003, when the conveyor belt was installed. In 2016, the landmark franchise was bought by basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal.
The NBA legend promised to renovate the building after February’s arson, saying the Midtown Krispy Kreme would be “be back stronger than ever.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has reached out to the company for more information on Wednesday’s blaze.
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