Surprised residents gathered on the streets last night as an iconic burger restaurant in the city caught fire.
About 75 firefighters rushed to Portswood Road while a fire ravaged 7Bone Burger Co Southampton.
Dense black smoke rose into the sky around 7:30 p.m.
Teams from all over Hampshire
According to the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, there were initially 14 engines across the county at the scene.
READ MORE: Summary as firefighters tackle fire at Southampton restaurant
The fire destroyed the site of the popular burger place and caused damage to the old Richmond Inn next door, which is currently unoccupied.
Teams have been working late into the night to contain the fire and remain in place this morning.
Damage to 7Bone Dam in Portswood Road, Southmpton.
Detoured traffic
Police closed Portswood Road at its intersections with Alma Road and near Brookvale Road while emergency services dealt with the situation.
Both motorcyclists and pedestrians were driven out of the area, but since then the route has reopened.
Firefighters on Portswood Road on July 8, 2022.
What happened?
About 75 firefighters gathered to deal with the fire that involved stations as far away as Cosham.
According to St Mary’s fire station supervisor Peter Larcombe, an engine was parked in the area throughout the night.
WATCH: The videos show 75 firefighters rushing to put out the restaurant fire
Work is underway to ensure the safety and security of the site.
The causes of the fire are still unknown, but an investigation is yet to be opened today.
7Bone on Portswood Road damaged after a fire.
Counting the cost
The roof of 7Bone has collapsed with equipment working all night to prevent the fire from re-igniting.
The place is cordoned off this morning with the restaurant badly damaged.
Emergency services said no one was injured.
A @ Cosham23 crew left @ 7bone_dive just as I arrived this morning. The roof has collapsed and there is great damage inside😞 @dailyecho pic.twitter.com/8Ikw4Uzy7S
– Tom_DailyEcho (@TDailyecho) July 9, 2022
Praise the firefighters
Incident commander Rob Cole gave credit to the crews involved in the operation on Friday.
He said: “Our teams worked incredibly hard in hot conditions to aggressively fight the fire and prevent it from spreading to adjacent facilities.
“During the incident, we worked closely with our Hampshire police colleagues who closed the surrounding roads.”
Firefighters working to contain the fire at 7Bone on Portswood Road
In a statement, he thanked local businesses for providing refreshments to firefighters during the “incident on a wet night.”
A 7Bone spokesman praised the restaurant team for doing a “great job of acting quickly and getting themselves and customers out safely without hurting anyone”.
PHOTOS: Huge response from fire service to fire at 7bone restaurant in Southampton
They also gave “a lot of thanks” to the fire and rescue services “who were amazing, fought and controlled the fire.”