Grease Buildup Cause of Restaurant Closure

March 4, 2024

Grease buildup is one of the most common causes of fire & other safety concerns within the foodservice industry. This story highlights how grease fires are all too common, but could easily be prevented.

The popular East Greenwich restaurant that caught fire last week will remain closed until further notice with the likely cause being grease buildup. Firefighters rushed to Finn’s Harborside late Friday night after flames were seen shooting from the side of the building.

Everyone escaped safely and no one was injured. However, the waterfront restaurant was significantly damaged. R.I. State Fire Marshal Timothy McLaughlin told 12 News the fire was likely caused by a buildup of grease on the kitchen hood and vents.

McLaughlin noted that the kitchen hood was last cleaned back in January, but the excess grease in the vents wasn’t discovered until after the fact.

“The most probable cause of this fire is lack of cleaning in the duct work to the outside of the building.”

R.I. State Fire Marshal Timothy McLaughlin

The owners of Finn’s Harborside explained that the fire has given them no choice but to remain closed indefinitely.

“We are still working through the aftermath of this unfortunate event and have a long road ahead of us as we rebuild our family business and second home,” the owners wrote.

“Our main concern right now is our incredible employees and dedicated staff as we are eager to get them back to work. In the weeks to come, we will be working on potential fundraising opportunities that will allow us to give 100% of the proceeds towards supporting our employees and their families while they are out of work,” they continued.

Finn’s Harborside is also in the process of rebooking previously scheduled private events.

How can owner/operators minimize their fire risk between cleans?

This has been a long-term problem faced in commercial kitchens since day dot as metal kitchen grease filters only intercept between 20-40% of the grease from getting into the rest of the system. Since 2016, Shepherd Filters has been working with businesses large and small around the globe to:

Shepherd Filters work three times harder than conventional metal filters, to stop up to 98% or grease from contaminating your hood. This equates to a cleaner system all year round, reducing your filter and duct cleaning costs by over 80%!

Contact us to see if the Shepherd Filters solution is right for your business too!

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