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Staff still reeling after Gun Club fire

Photo

Photo by Bill Olmsted

Traffic rolls past the remains of the Gun Club, two days after a fire destroyed the Beloit landmark.

Photo

Photo by Bill Olmsted

The Gun Club restaurant is nothing but charged piles of debris, two days after a fire that destroyed the Beloit Landmark.

TURTLE TOWNSHIP — Cindy Dajka has walked through the rubble with a fire marshal.

She's walked through with her family.

Still, she can't quite believe that the Gun Club is gone.

"It's like somebody died," said Dajka, who owned the restaurant with her husband, Frank. "I feel horrible for staff and for the city of Beloit. All the history that's been lost …"

The supper club at 1122 E. Colley Road was destroyed early Saturday morning in a fire that started in the kitchen or dining area, according to a news release from the Town of Turtle Fire Department.

The cause of the fire has not been determined. The investigation still was underway Monday afternoon, said town of Turtle Fire Chief Tim Huffman. Workers were shoveling rubble one pile at a time, Huffman said.

"We're going through bit by bit," Huffman said.

He expected the investigation to continue today.

The fire was reported at 5:13 a.m. Saturday. When firefighters arrived, the building was fully engulfed, the news release states.

Firefighters worked first to protect nearby buildings. The fire was declared under control at 9 a.m.

Departments from the city of Beloit, town of Beloit, Clinton and South Beloit, Ill., assisted the Turtle Fire Department.

Damage is estimated at $1 million, the release states.

For decades, the supper club has been a popular draw for dinner and live music. The Dajkas have owned the business for more than eight years, Dajka said. Before that, they were regulars, she said.

Friends, fans and musicians have stopped by, and everyone feels "as bad as Frank and I do," said Dajka, of Rockton, Ill.

Employees gathered Saturday night to commiserate, Dajka said. They planned to do the same thing Monday night, she said.

Otherwise, her employees would be sitting home with nothing to do, she said.

"That's about all we can do," Dajka said.