DELEVAN, N.Y. (WKBW) — The Delevan community is rallying behind the owners of the Rusty Nail Tavern Restaurant after a fire damaged the popular dining destination over the weekend.
On Friday, dozens of firefighters responded to the blaze on N Main Street. Fire departments from Delevan, Yorkshire, Machias, West Valley, Franklinville, Farmersville, Ischua, Ellicottville and more were on the scene.
“We were sitting there for probably about an hour and one of the waitresses smelled some smoke," John Hoffman, a Delevan resident who was dining at the tavern, told WKBW on Monday. "About a half hour everybody was smelling more smoke, and then the manager Jen finally called 911."
Hoffman and Crissi Lukowski, another Delevan resident, left prior to emergency crews' arrival, but were able to survey the damage the following day.
"It was really shocking," Lukowski told WKBW. "I used to work there before it was the Rusty Nail, and it was Hardee's Tavern for a long time. It was there for over 40 years."
WATCH: Delevan community rallies behind owners of Rusty Nail Tavern after weekend fire
"Delavan's doesn't have a lot of businesses anymore, so it was nice to see somebody investing in the community," Lukowski said.
WKBW reached out to the owners of the Rusty Nail, but was told they were unavailable. However, one of the owners did address the community during a Facebook Live on Sunday.
"We want to take a quick second, tell everybody a huge thank you for your love and support, and that everybody's been coming together, trying to get this place back up and running before we know it," the user told viewers.
They added that plans are in the works to auction off surviving items from the tavern later this week.
Other members of the community were quick to show their support in the wake of the fire.
One user wrote, "We lost a bright spot in our little village last night as the Rusty Nail (formerly Hardy's Tavern) was lost in a fire." The post added, "We can only hope she chooses to rebuild and reopen in the same location and come together as a village to support her in that monumental effort"
Assemblyman David DiPietro of Assembly District 147 wrote:
Other neighboring businesses shared their support:
The cause of the fire has not been released at this time. A GoFundMe has been established for the Rusty Nail Tavern Restaurant to help cover the costs of rebuilding.
