Massive fire breaks out at Bering Sea Bar and Grill in Nome, Alaska
September 22, 2022 Update: Nome Volunteer Fire Department Chief Jim West Jr. reports that the Bering Sea Bar and Grill was a total loss, but they were able to save the neighboring hotel, the Nome Nugget Inn. The Nome Nugget reporting only suffered minor damage on the back of the building; the rest of the structure is reported to be intact. West reported that three people were sent to the hospital to be treated but were released later. There thankfully no deaths from this fire. The cause of the fire is still unknown at this time.
INITIAL STORY: A large fire broke out on Saturday, September 17, 2022, engulfing the well-known Bering Sea Bar and Grill in downtown Nome, Alaska, which is located along Front Street. It is reported that residents in the area of the building heard several explosions before seeing the restaurant completely engulfed in flames. What started the fire is not known at this time, but locals are saying several propane tanks have exploded due to the fire, and they are spraying embers all over town. The Nome Volunteer Fire Department reports they are in the process of demolishing the building in order to contain the fire and prevent it from spreading to neighboring buildings as winds in excess of 50 mph were ongoing from the Remnants of Typhoon Merbok continue to impact the city of Nome, Alaska. Some unconfirmed reports that some fire might have spread to the Nugget Inn on the west side of the Bar and Grill.
Additionally, in the video above, you will see scenes captured earlier that afternoon as the Nome Sound Observation station in Nome, Alaska, reached a peak water level height of 10.52 feet around 12:06 PDT or 2:06 CDT. The various clips of the storm surge impacting Nome were captured between 2-3 PM when this peak water height occurred. While it is again not known what caused the fire, this Bar and Grill does back up to the sea wall that was getting inundated with heavy seas for much of the day. These waters getting into the building could be a partial culprit. For more on the historic storm that is also ongoing across the region, check out: Remnants of Typhoon Merbok Impacting Alaska this Weekend
We will continue to update this article as more information becomes available and any additional video we might receive you can be the first to see it by following us on any of our various social media platforms or by subscribing to our Youtube channel.