Fire Destroyed More Than Just Pizza Man
MILWAUKEE - The massive fire on the east side Tuesday night destroyed more than just Milwaukee landmark Pizza Man. Three other businesses and an apartment complex were also left in ruins.
When Phil Olson heard about the fire, his heart stopped. His son Matt, a Marquette student, lived in one of the burning apartments. To make matters worse, Matt wasn’t answering his phone.
“We couldn’t reach our son. We were in a panic. We knew we couldn’t go down to Pizza Man, because, what would you find there?” Olson said.
Call it a stroke of luck, but Matt wasn’t inside the inferno. That night, he happened to be staying with his girlfriend. His parents found him there.
“They were frantically ringing the doorbell, like, “Where’s Matt? Where’s Matt?” said Matt Olson.
“I lost everything. I went to Kohl’s last night with my mom and my girlfriend because I don’t have any clothes,” Matt said.
On Wednesday, firefighters and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms continued to investigate the cause of the fire. But the answers can’t bring back what Matt and many others lost.
“I had a lot of stuff. A lot of great memories there. A lot of stuff I would have liked to have shown my kids or grandkids, but unfortunately, it’s gone,” Matt said.
The Red Cross is assisting some of those displaced by the fire.
While there has been a huge outpouring of support for Pizza Man, three other businesses were also destroyed: Black and White Café, Grecian Delight, and Cush Lounge. Business owners and employees are now wondering if they can ever recover.
William Jenkins got the call from his friends early Tuesday morning. When he raced to Oakland and North, he saw Cush Lounge, the business he’s owned for 12 years, burning before his eyes.
“I joke with my friends. My friends used to call me and text me, “Hey, Bill, Cush is on fire!” and I’d run down there and walk into a full bar of people laughing at me. But this time, it wasn’t a joke. It was scary, and it was tough to handle,” Jenkins said.
The future is in doubt for Jenkins and his 20 employees, but he’s staying positive.
“Things happen. I’m alive, I’m breathing. No one was hurt in the fire. No one was injured. No one’s dead. Material things can be replaced,” Jenkins said.
It comes at a tough time for Jenkins. His family owned restaurant, Bayou, is being hurt by the seemingly never-ending construction on the Humboldt bridge. Jenkins says he’s not sure yet whether or not he will rebuild.
“It’s a little premature at this time. I want to bring back Cush bigger and better,” Jenkins said.
The owner of Pizza Man says he does want to rebuild, but he’s not sure whether it will be at Oakland and North or a new location on the east side.
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