Here’s what caused the fire that shut down Med Deli and other shops in Chapel Hill
A fire that left Franklin Street businesses, including the popular Mediterranean Deli, wrestling with how to rebuild and reopen started on the restaurant’s roof, town officials said Thursday.
The Chapel Hill Fire Department’s investigation found the July 22 fire that gutted the West Franklin Street restaurant was sparked accidentally by a contractor working on the roof, according to a news release.
The fire caused $3 million in damage to Mediterranean Deli, according to Fire Department reports released Thursday. It also caused $11,500 in damages to D.B Sutton & Co., a wine store and salon, and $60,000 in damages to the Moshi Moshi Means Hello salon, the reports said.
Roughly 25 trucks and 48 firefighters from several departments responded to the fire, which took several hours to put out.
Med Deli owner Jamil Khadoura said he found a “ball of fire just as big as my palm” after smelling smoke at the end of the restaurant’s lunch rush. The fire spread quickly through the 81-year-old building, he told The News & Observer shortly after the fire.
“I was actually standing over the fire. And then I got really scared,” he said.
Firefighters had to cut holes in the roof of an adjacent business and the back of the building to create breaks and prevent further damage, store owners and a restoration worker have said. Three Chapel Hill firefighters were treated for minor smoke and heat-related issues, but no one else was injured, town officials have said.
Kadoura reopened his catering business July 29 in the former Elaine’s restaurant space on West Franklin Street. The work to clean up and repair Med Deli and its food market next door could take several months, Kadoura has said.
On Tuesday, he told 97.9 The Hill WCHL that Med Deli’s dining room service also will temporarily reopen in the Elaine’s space, possibly by October and with a limited menu.
A GoFundMe campaign that started after the fire has raised $213,856 to support over 50 Med Deli employees and their families. Kadoura told The N&O that his payroll is about $100,000 a month.
The 3,126 donors to the GoFundMe campaign have shown “tremendous support,” according to a Tuesday update, that “demonstrates the power of community and the lasting positive impact local businesses can have on the communities they serve.”
Most other shops affected by the fire have reopened, including Tropical Smoothie Cafe and D.B. Sutton & Co.
Both had to treat their spaces for smoke damage, and D.B. Sutton, which shares a wall with Med Deli, also lost ceiling tiles to water damage. The power was also cut to the cooling system, which keeps the wines at the correct temperature, forcing the store to sell as much of its wine as possible. The sale brought long lines of customers to the store after the fire.
An employee of Tropical Smoothie who answered the phone Thursday told The N&O that business has been slow since their July 26 reopening.
Meanwhile, Simply Audrey, a designer clothing boutique operating out of the D.B. Sutton storefront, remains closed. D.B Sutton & Co. owner David Sutton said by phone Thursday that Simply Audrey owner Karen Cunningham is focusing on her fall collection after losing her summer clothing lines to smoke damage. She also continues to sell available items on the store’s website.
Moshi Moshi Means Hello hair salon is also still closed but has shifted its Orange County customers to its Golden Belt location in downtown Durham. The salon posted on its website that the Chapel Hill location could be closed for at least three weeks to clean up mostly “cosmetic” damage.
This story was originally published August 10, 2023 at 11:59 AM.
