An Angus chip shop has reopened for business after staff worked around the clock following a devastating fire.
Long-time owner Claude Batard paid tribute to his staff at the Golden Haddock in Arbroath who had rolled their sleeves up and mucked in to clean up the blaze-hit shop.
Mr Batard said: “It has been very hectic but we’re delighted to be open for business again.”
The blaze broke out under the shop’s main fryer on February 6 just before 5pm. The alarm was raised after staff saw smoke coming from the main range, which hours earlier had been the subject of an extensive independent safety inspection.
Employees Mel McCombie, Erin Henderson and Nic Falconer also alerted staff at the neighbouring Sugar and Spice shop, as well as nearby residents.
Mr Batard, who has owned the shop for more than 15 years, said the main serving area of the shop was worst affected, with significant smoke damage to the adjoining restaurant area.
He said: “The damage to the main fryer has been repaired but we had a disaster with the cleaning. We were supposed to get cleaners but we ended up doing the cleaning ourselves so you can imagine the hours we have spent on that.
“It has been around the clock and it needed such a deep clean because it was so badly smoke-logged. I would say 95% of the smell has gone but I never thought for a second we would be open again so soon.
“The technicians came immediately after the fire and they were working non-stop to repair the damage, which was fantastic. The complete front of the pan including the electrics has been redone completely because a cable had been burned during the fire.
“The staff have been fantastic helping clean the shop and allowing us to open again so quickly.”
Mr Batard said his customers had been stopping him during the closure to ask when the shop would be open again.
He added: “I would say the customers have been missing us if the reaction has been anything to go by.”
The shop opened on Wednesday afternoon and any lingering smell of smoke was soon replaced by the smell of fish and chips. With the fryer back in business, locals were soon queuing up.
Firefighter photo Jim Ratcliffe