Fire destroys one Belmont business, damages others

BELMONT — Businesses damaged in a Saturday night fire in Belmont sustained at least $1 million in damage, and some could be closed for months.

At least six businesses fell victim to the fire, which started around 7:30 p.m. in Jimmy’s Food Mart at 297 Belmont St. Jimmy’s was destroyed, while adjacent businesses in the one-story building were damaged by smoke and firefighting efforts.

No one was injured in the fire; as of Sunday, its cause was unknown.

Belmont firefighters battling the three-alarm blaze called in help from departments in Cambridge, Arlington, Waltham, and Watertown, according to a Belmont Fire Department spokesman. A plume of smoke from the fire could be seen several miles away around sunset Saturday night.

“The fire is still under investigation,” said Belmont Fire Captain John Mooney. “They know it started in the convenience store.”

A crew of workmen boarded up the damaged businesses on Sunday morning. The facade of Jimmy’s was charred. The store’s owners could not be reached for comment.

Next to Jimmy’s, the windows of the Shine On Salon were shattered and its ceiling was damaged. Kitty Lin, the salon’s owner, was at the shop Sunday morning inspecting the damage and said two customers and their children were in her salon when the fire started. Her husband ran next door to try to extinguish it, she said, but “he was shocked because it was so big.”

Other businesses in the building were closed, she added.

Lin said she was not sure how much of the damage her insurance would cover, but said she thought the repairs would take one to two months. She and her husband have several employees and had been in business for two years, she said.

Other businesses were not as badly harmed. Four doors down, Tony G’s BBQ owner Sasirat Grande said her sewage system was damaged.