Towels ignite fire at popular pancake house.

Byline: Andrea Damewood The Register-Guard

An early morning fire on Wednesday gutted a local pancake house that many of its regulars call a home away from home.

The Original Pancake House on East Broadway sustained an estimated $400,000 in damage during the 4:15 a.m. fire, discovered by the restaurant's cook as he arrived at work. Officials said the fire was caused by spontaneous combustion.

Flames were pushing out of the seams of the back door, and smoke was billowing from the roof by the time Eugene fire crews arrived, Deputy Fire Marshall Keith Haggas said.

Firefighters battled the blaze, which caused smoke damage throughout the building and destroyed the kitchen, for almost an hour, Haggas said. Blackened lace curtains still clung to the front windows Wednesday afternoon, and shattered glass and melted chairs were visible inside.

Investigators said the fire was sparked by spontaneous combustion from evaporating grease on towels piled in a laundry basket, fire department spokesman Glen Potter said.

Grease and solvents on rags can evaporate, and that evaporation in a confined area generates heat, Potter said. If the heat reaches the self-ignition temperature of the substance, it burns. Because the fire was indoors and in the early morning, investigators said Tuesday's triple-digit temperatures probably did not play a role.

"Our bacon, it got us," owner Dawn Taylor said. "It's very shocking, and we're devastated because we have 22 employees that we care about, and a lot of customers that aren't going to be able to come and eat for a little while."

Customers arriving for a late morning breakfast were greeted with yellow fire tape.

Ed Glennon said he orders ham and eggs with a side of pancakes at least once a month, after doctor's appointments.

"We've been coming here for years," Glennon said. "We usually go over to the Eugene Clinic and then come over here for breakfast. It's really too bad."

Taylor and her husband, Daryle Taylor, who have owned The Original Pancake House franchise since October 2004, vow to reopen their business as soon as possible. They are covered by fire insurance, she said, and they hope a remodel will be complete within a few months.

Daryle Taylor has worked at the Original Pancake House since 1969, just four years after the restaurant opened in Eugene, Dawn Taylor said. The business has been at its current location for 11 years.

In just five hours, 12 messages had accumulated on the couple's answering machine, she said, several of them from customers expressing their condolences.

"We have so many regular customers, once-a-dayers, a two-or-three-times-a-day guy; he's crazy." Dawn Taylor said. "We just love our customers. We're going to miss them so much. I just feel bad for them, like we've kind let them down in a way."

The remodel will give the couple some welcome downtime, Dawn Taylor said. When it is complete, the look will be similar, but some things, such as the wallpaper, will be different.

"It will be a reflection of Daryle and Dawn," she said.

The fire was the third blaze caused by spontaneous combustion in the Eugene-Springfield area since May.

Potter said that rags coated with grease or solvents should be spread in a well-ventilated area until they can be cleaned, or they should be stored in an approved self-ventilated container.