Pizzamania, a beloved pizzeria and Whittier staple for more than 50 years, burned down Tuesday morning in a fire the owner believes may have been intentionally set.
The pizzeria and four other businesses were damaged after a fire was reported at 2:25 a.m. at the one-story shopping center in the 13500 block of Telegraph Road, Los Angeles County fire officials said.
Firefighters arrived to find all five businesses engulfed in flames. The fire was extinguished at 3:04 a.m.
Customers and passersby posted images of the fire on social media and expressed their grief at the loss of the restaurant that has been a fixture in the community for decades.
“NOOOOOOO!!!!!” one person posted on Instagram, followed by a series of crying emojis.
A spokesman for the Los Angeles County Fire Department said the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is investigating the cause of the fire.
“Someone came and set it on fire,” said Warren Haines, one of the restaurant’s co-owners.
The restaurant's video cameras were destroyed in the fire, but Haines said video from one of the neighboring businesses showed what appeared to be someone intentionally setting the fire.
Haines, who opened the restaurant in 1973 with business partner Jim Barrit, said the person appeared to have targeted Pizzamania.
Investigators were searching the area for additional surveillance footage, he said.
Sheriff's Department officials did not immediately respond to questions about the fire.
The fire left about 50 restaurant employees out of work, Haines said.
“I'm pissed off,” he said. “It takes your breath away.”
Just hours after the fire, Haines said her son, who manages the restaurant's social media, had received more than 700 emails from customers devastated by the news and wondering how they could help.
Moncy Flores, owner of the nearby Bianca's beauty salon, said her shop was also damaged in the fire and she's not sure if anything can be saved.
“We don't know what it's like inside, they didn't let us in,” he said.
The salon has been at that location for about 20 years and his family has owned the place for about nine years, he said.
He said he doesn't know how the fire started, but he wasn't surprised to learn it might have been intentionally set. About a week ago, he said, two of the other businesses had their windows smashed.
The place has always been very busy and popular thanks to Pizzamania, he said.
Haines said he was touched by the support from customers and understands that Pizzamania has been an icon in the community for decades.
“They call and half of them are crying,” she said. “It means everything to me.”
Haines said he was shaken by the fire but intends to keep Pizzamania alive.
“We are an institution,” he said. “I intend to rebuild it.”
