Moe's Southwest Grill in Blue Back Square may remain closed for as long as week following an incident which occurred early Friday morning.
The West Hartford Fire Department responded to an alarm around 6 a.m. Friday, and discovered that water was flooding the premises. It was not just water, however. A pipe had burst in the building's HVAC system, and glycol, a type of anti-freeze used in heating systems, was mixed with the water.
Owner Matt Rusconi said late Friday that he had been at the restaurant all day, throwing out food and doing an initial clean-up.
"They have to dry out the walls, the floor," he said, before the restaurant can be re-opened. ServePro will be coming in on Saturday to begin the major work, he said. An electrician checked out all of the wire, which was not damaged, Rusconi said.
Rusconi said that the water damaged the floors, walls, and the ceiling in the back of the restaurant. He said there is also a large hole where the pipe burst which will need to be repaired. Rusconi thinks the cold weather was a major factor in the incident.
A West Hartford building inspector visited the premises on Friday, and the Health Department was also brought in to assess the situation because food was involved.
Rusconi said it may be a week before Moe's can re-open, but that it would be clean and sparkling. He plans to stage a grand re-opening as soon as he can.
"We adore our guests, and we apologize. We're going to make it up to them as soon as we can."
