UPDATE - Electric fire guts Summit Motorsports Park concession stand

A fire gutted a concession stand Thursday morning at Summit Motorsports Park and caused about $150,000 worth of damage.

"There was a lot of equipment in there," said Lt. John Soisson, of the Norwalk Fire Department.

Soisson, who investigated the blaze, said it started behind a stand-up freezer on the east wall.

"It is believed to have been caused by an electrical short," he wrote in his report.

The building is a complete loss. It housed a food stand, a drink stand and Wild Bill's Ice Cream Saloon -- made famous by the $1-a-pound ice cream.

"We'll have to tear it all down," park president Bill Bader Jr. said.

However, race track officials were preparing to get temporary concession stands in place as Summit prepared to host a big-money, three-day bracket race which began at 9 a.m. today. While the firefighters were still cleaning up, Bader and his crew were making arrangements for portable food stands to be in place by this morning.

"It's always something," Bader said Thursday as he shook his head.

The buildings to each side of the concession stand -- a local parts store and a souvenir shop -- weren't damaged in the fire.

Soisson credited the quick thinking and action of several park employees with keeping the fire from being any worse than it was. He said their actions were "instrumental" in keeping the blaze not only contained, but kept it from spreading.

"Park employees were spraying water into a doorway in the kitchen area as we arrived, slowing the growth of the fire," Soisson wrote in his report.

The Norwalk crew arrived at 9:49 a.m. Thursday, six minutes after an employee called 9-1-1.

"It was still going when we got there. ... It took us about 15 minutes to get it knocked down (and) under control," Soisson said later.

The kitchen and attic areas were fully involved when Norwalk firefighters, which eventually numbered 16, arrived. There was heavy smoke coming from the one-story structure at the time.

Soisson said the fire burned through the roof near the point of origin.

"That part is a total loss," he added.

Two men from the Townsend Township Volunteer Norwalk Fire Department provided Norwalk with an additional tanker. Soisson estimated the Townsend firefighters were on-scene for about an hour.

About one hour before the fire started, a park employee went into the kitchen area to get some supplies. The worker smelled something, but couldn't determine what it was, Soisson said.

"It wasn't a strong odor," the firefighter quickly added.

Employees returned to the concession stand and discovered the fire had started.

"There was smoke and fire coming out of a vent. An employee dumped an extinguisher on it," Soisson said.

Bader said things could have been worse. He credited the Norwalk Fire Department with quick action.

"(Chief Doug) Coletta and his crew did a great job," Bader said. "They work with us and cover for our races. They always do a great job."

The next big event at Summit after this weekend is the 13th Annual Mopar World Finals from Sept. 17 to 19.