UPDATE, 12:58 p.m .:

Humboldt Smokehouse owner Laura Bringhurst confirmed to the Outpost that no one was injured in the blaze. The fire started in her smoker, which is located in a small outbuilding to the rear of the restaurant.

“I was finishing up my pork,” she said. “The day is ruined. The week is ruined. This is basically my worst day ever.”

Bringhurst said obviously her business would need to close for the foreseeable future. Her first thoughts were for the clients who’d already placed orders that she’d be forced to disappoint, but she said she plans to rebuild.

“We’re gonna keep on keepin’ on,” she said. “As soon as possible I’m going to get a new smokehouse shack and new smokers. As soon as I can.”

— Andrew Goff

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Just after 12 p.m. this afternoon, the smokehouse attached to Humboldt Smokehouse — a popular downtown BBQ joint — went up in flames.

Humboldt Bay Fire responded quickly to the scene and was able to knock down the fire, but the outbuilding that houses the smoker was very visibly damaged. There appeared to be some damage to the main building as well.

As of this writing, firefighters are up on the roof of the business, presumably checking for any spread.

North Coast News’ Austin Castro was at the scene and filed to Facebook Live. More photos below.