‘Everything is gone.’ Large fire damages Eatontown Popeyes on Route 35

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A large fire caused extensive damage to the Route 35 Popeyes restaurant in Eatontown on Friday morning. Intense flames and smoke engulfed the restaurant around 5 a.m. as fire poured through the roof. The inside of the restaurant was gutted, and every window was blown out. The side logo was also damaged. (Photo courtesy: Red Bank Fire Department) Multiple fire departments and mutual aid responded to the scene. The Wanamassa Fire Company says the response was upgraded to three-alarms and additional manpower was brought in because of water supply issues and the rapidly growing fire conditions. Route 35 was temporarily shutdown in the area while crews worked to put out the fire. Tanisa Khanum, the shift manager at Popeyes, told News 12 New Jersey that no one was working when the fire started because the store was closed. “There's lots of memories that are involved in that store, but now everything is gone. We never expected this,” Khanum said. “I was scheduled to come in in three hours, and we don't know what's going to happen to all the employees that work here.” There is no official word yet of any injuries or when Popeyes will reopen. The cause of the fire is under investigation. "