RIDE-CT – Classic Cars Celebrating Classic Cars in Connecticut
OXFORD, CT – (Editor’s note: Reopened in Jan. 29.) It has been a bad spell for drive-in restaurants in Connecticut that host popular cruise nights. First, the Sycamore Drive-In Restaurant in Bethel shut down on Christmas Eve, if only temporarily. Now, Fritz’s Snack Bar in Oxford has suffered a fire on New Year’s Day.
The Oxford Center Volunteer Fire Company was dispatched to Fritz’s Snack Bar around 5:30 a.m. today for a reported structure fire. The fire department reported on Facebook, “Upon arrival crews found smoke pushing out of the second floor window. The fire was contained to the second floor apartment. Crews worked quickly to put the fire out.”
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WTNH/News 8 reports that a second floor apartment and the restaurant suffered water damage. Two female residents of the apartment were at home at the time. One was transported to the hospital for possible smoke inhalation.
Fritz’s Snack Bar, which hosts a weekly cruise night on Wednesdays during the warm months, is expected to be closed for several days, fire officials told News8. The Oxford Center Volunteer Fire Company hosts a popular car show every year.
Meanwhile, the Sycamore Drive-in Restaurant remains closed after its operator of 28 years shut down the business, announcing “An era of come to end!” on Dec. 26. The property owner’s now says a new tenant may soon take over the eatery. The name and some menu items may be retained. The Sycamore has hosted cruise nights on Saturdays.
(Photos courtesy of the Oxford Center Volunteer Fire Company.)
