Patrick O’Connor.
By Ruth Khowais
Few signs remain of the once vibrant west Fenway restaurant scene. El Pelon, the popular taqueria with always a line out the door, is boarded up and unrecognizable. At Thornton’s Fenway Grille white columns wrapped in scorched holiday wreaths are all that remain outside an empty shell. The only reminder of Sorento’s charm is the stately wrought iron fence with empty planters.
The 4-alarm fire that destroyed these six jewels of mom and pop restaurants and a dry cleaner started at approximately 2 a.m.. on January 6 at 96 Peterborough Street in Thornton’s, according to a Boston Police Department report. No cause has yet been determined. The dense smoke generated by the fire forced the evacuation of about 130 residents living in adjoining apartment buildings. They were first relocated to the William McKinley School across the street, which also served as shelter for firemen, then moved to the Howard Johnson’s hotel on Boylston Street. An eye witness described firefighters pouring water from every angle—on the ground, from high up on a ladder truck, and suspended aerially. Two firemen were injured by falling on the street filled with ice frozen from hoses. No fatalities occurred on the fire.The buildings did not have firewalls, not a requirement at the time they were built. The fire apparently spread rapidly through the ceiling into the other shops. Fire fighters estimated damage at $5 million.
Photo by Kerry Mooney.
South Boston resident James Lovett had just finished grocery shopping at the Fenway Shaw’s when he smelled smoke and noticed the multiple fire engines in front of Thornton’s. He stopped to watch and witnessed the fire suddenly leap to three connecting restaurants. Ironically, Lovett had just received a gift certificate for Thornton’s. Jana Peretz, who lives a few doors away from Sorrento’s, was awakened at 3 a.m. by her cat sitting on her chest. She got up, smelled smoke, and saw “a huge cloud” outside her window moving “faster than the fog could move..”
The international flavor and outdoor seating drew residents and baseball fans alike to Peterborough Street. There are few residents in the neighborhood who did not frequent at least one of these eateries for Sunday brunch at Thornton’s, lunch at Greek Isles, a takeout at El Pelon, a special occasion at Sorento’s, an ethnic dish at Rod Dee or Umi. Richard Barry, a five-day a week visitor to Thornton’s was too upset when interviewed on the day of the fire to view the wreckage. Barry said, “I was there the day they (Thornton’s) opened fifteen years ago. I was there yesterday at noon on the last day, and, hopefully, it won’t be the last.”
Whether the restaurants will be able to reopen is up in the air. According to a press assistant for Mayor Menino, city officials are working closely with the seven neighborhood businesses to help them reopen and provide financial, technical, and permitting assistance. Meanwhile, investigators are trying to determine the cause of the fire.
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