Neon Sign Device Blamed for Georgia Restaurant Fire

Fire officials in Atlanta’s northeastern suburbs say a neon sign transformer in the attic caused a fire that tore through a barbeque restaurant and left the building on the verge of collapsing.

The fire was reported around 5:20 p.m. Jan. 16 at Dreamland Bar-B-Que on Peachtree Parkway in Norcross.

Gwinnett County fire Lt. Colin Rhoden tells the Gwinnett Daily Post the transformer was not in use at the time, but caused electrical arcing in the attic.

Fire officials said the actions of a manager at the restaurant in evacuating guests and employees averted what could have been a loss of life during the dinner rush at the restaurant. Everyone made it out, and no one was hurt.