Patrons rally around Merrillville, Indiana restaurant after pipe burst causes flooding
MERRILLVILLE, Ind. (CBS) -- A Merrillville, Indiana restaurant was cleaning up Friday after the deep freeze sent a cascade of floodwaters pouring down through the ceilings.
A pipe burst in the in the ceiling Wednesday, and dumped gallons of water across the two dining rooms at Asparagus Restaurant, at 7876 Broadway in Merrillville.
On Friday, signs of this current deep freeze still showed on the pavement of Asparagus Restaurant's parking lot -- and inside the front door. Plastic sheets blocked the two dining rooms, furniture was pushed to one side, and lights hung through exposed beams.
"Water just started gushing," said Asparagus general manager Kate Witte.
After the damage Wednesday after the lunch rush, an antifreeze loop in the restaurant's sprinkler system failed - allowing pipes to freeze and burst, and sending those gallons of water from the system through the ceiling into dining areas.
"It was sad. It was really sad. There's a lot of us that work here, and we just… I don't know - it looked a lot worse than now. Water was still pouring out of lights. We thought we would not reopen for a long time," said Witte. "Hopefully, it's not going to be as long as we thought.
Manager Kate Witte said the flooding was unlike anything she had ever seen.
But almost immediately, the restaurant's customers - loyal after 30 years in the same location - came to help.
"Within, hours we had people here helping and working with us," Witte said.
The restaurant as of Friday was only operating at a third of its normal capacity - turning to to-go sales to make up the difference, and moving around to accommodate the large parties they had already booked.
The restaurant has insurance to help recover - with repair estimates around $25,000.
"We're just looking forward to getting opened," Witte said. "As much as we can get – you know, as quickly as we can get it, even if it's just one room at a time - we will do that."
The plan as of Friday was to reopen in a week - which is good timing ahead of Valentine's Day, one of the restaurant's top three busiest days of the year.
The owners do have a sister location in Tinley Park – Siam Marina, at 16846 Oak Park Ave. – and they say they say sales numbers are up at the Tinley Park restaurant customers support them through the repairs.