Community near LSU speaks out after loss of Caruso’s grocery store in fire

BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) – A community just north of LSU is reeling from the loss of a beloved local grocery store. Caruso’s was suddenly lost in a fire last night, and firefighters said it’s a complete loss.             

Neighbors who live and work near Caruso’s Grocery Store at the corner of Highland Road and McKinley Street said the owner is starting to pick up the pieces, after the total loss of his business.

“He’s still around, like he is trying to get it back up and running,” said neighbor Ashley Crosby. “We really like the store, my guys in the back, they get food from there. Plate lunches, crawfish when he does them. It is missed, and I hope they can get it back open.”

Crosby has worked next door to Caruso’s for eight years and said she’d go over there often, befriending the owner in the process.

“Sometimes we talked about our kids and stuff. He’s got kids in college, I’ve got kids in college, so we’d talk about that,” Crosby mentioned.              

Curt Monte with the Baton Rouge Fire Department said no one was in the store at the time of the fire, and crews were able to stop it from spreading to nearby buildings.

“Just before 9 p.m. last night, we got the report of a fire on Highland Road, Caruso’s Grocery Store or convenience store,” said Monte. “When crews arrived, they found heavy smoke coming from the building. They made entry and found heavy fire inside around some drink coolers. Investigators were called, of course, to try to figure out the cause. They pinpointed where it began in an area where there was an electrical conduit that ran those coolers. After speaking to owners or managers, they said they had problems with breakers tripping and things like that, and it was ruled accidental.”

“They get a lot of business, they’re open pretty late into the evening. People bike and walk, and LSU workers on their lunch breaks come there. People know about it, it will be a loss,” Crosby mentioned.

Monte said if you start to see breakers trip or have issues with them staying on, it’s a warning sign, and you should call an electrician.

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