Chimney pinpointed as seat of hotel blaze

"It could have been worse."
That's the philosophical approach Grumpy Mole Saloon owner Shane Armstrong is taking as he and his staff sift through the charred remains of their offices after a fire at the Tauranga pub.
Tauranga fire safety officer Ken McKeagg has confirmed the inner city fire - which broke out just after 5pm on Wednesday - started in a chimney leading up through the ceiling from an open fire in the bar below.
Dry timber surrounding the flue between the floors caught alight sending flames up through the floorboards and into the room above.
Mr McKeagg said the age of the building - which was last rebuilt following a major fire in 1936 - meant the timber would have already been dry prior to the open fire being installed when the western-style bar opened in 1997.
He said the same scenario occurred in older homes where timber surrounding concrete fire places dried out over the years, lowering the temperature required for the wood to ignite.
Other than water from burst pipes and fire hoses, the bar below was undamaged in the fire and fire alarms, water and gas has been reconnected in the rest of the building. Mr Armstrong was grateful the fire had broken out when the bar was empty.
"It was really a very quiet point of time for us. The fire could have been roaring away at 10 o'clock on a Saturday night," he said.
He had hoped to re-open last night but with gaping holes in the roof, there was a risk that any rain could have put a dampener on the evening. He hoped the pub would reopen tonight.
"If it rains the building fills up with water and it becomes a swimming pool rather than a pub," he said, looking up through blackened woodwork to the blue sky above.
"She's a few hundred thousand to fix that," he said, referring to the roof.
Mr Armstrong said his insurance would cover everything from loss of trade to the building and contents. But no amount of money will replace some of the priceless artwork which decorated the office walls - including works by Kiwi artists Dick Frizzell and Jeff Thompson, valued at about $5000 each.
The offices were a head office for The Armstrong Group which includes restaurants Coyote Bar and American-style restaurant Lone Star - also on The Strand.
Yesterday afternoon menus and props from the restaurants lay charred among the rubble, some of them - including Dolly Parton and Elvis Presley mannequins - gave cause for amusement amid the damage.
"Elvis has left the building," said Mr Armstrong.