HAWKINS, Texas — A beloved pizza restaurant burned down in Hawkins early Monday morning.
The Venice Pizza House was a local favorite place where people once gathered for meals and conversations but now it has turned into ashes.
"A bunch of people eat lunch there, the businesses around here, the guys working on the train tracks or whatever it may be. And then we'd normally eat there every Friday. So, that's definitely heartbreaking for us," said Samantha Shackelford, owner of The Petal Shack in Hawkins.
Several firefighters from Hawkins, Big Sandy, Ogburn, and Holly Lake responded to the fire.
"I appreciate all the volunteer firemen stepping up and coming out putting the fire out," Wood County Fire Marshal Tully Davidson said.
Davidson said the building is a total loss but no one was hurt in the fire. The fire started in a vacant building next door and spread to the restaurant. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, officials said.
"There's not much in Hawkins and it's one of three options. So it'll definitely be missed," Shackelford said.
However, pizza lovers can drive down to the second location of Venice Pizza House in Big Sandy.
"We're open (and) still running. And we still have deals here. So we'd love the business to come over here," said Dominique Sanborn, Venice Pizza House waitress in Big Sandy and Hawkins.
As for the Hawkins location, what will come next is still unknown. But the community said they will continue supporting their favorite local pizza.
