By: City Reporter
The Flamin’ Cajun restaurant located on Grand Massacre Street, around the corner from T.T strip club on Bourbon street, went up this week in flames in a ferocious blaze that saw the acclaimed Cajun / Creole establishment burn up in complete devastation.
Hathians’ Fire Department arrived quickly but the restaurant was already fully engulfed by the time they did. The old building had little ventilation with no window in the kitchen and was a wooden structure with a brick façade.
Captain Nathan Ferrer was able to move the co-owner Denise DeMarco to safety from the exterior where she lay injured on the ground. The captain, along with crew member and fellow firefighter Silvano Marcel, retrieved a dead man now identified as Davis ‘Pipes’ Johnson, 50, from the interior.
“Pipes, as he was known to locals, was already dead-on-arrival when I managed to get to him,” Captain Nathan Ferrer told the Observer. “He was a great chef an’ I really enjoyed his cookin’ at the Flamin’ Cajun so this is a very tragic death for the city an’ any loss of life is an unfortunate part of this work at times,” the captain has since carried out a fire investigation since last weekend’s blaze was eliminated yet was reticent to share the findings for now as a police investigation is also underway.
“There were no faulty appliances, gas leaks, damaged circuits, nothin’ like that. Make of that what you will,” Captain Nathan Ferrer, said when asked about the circumstances of the fire. This may imply that the restaurant had been intentionally set on fire, but the captain did not want to answer any further questions.
The Observer has also learned, from one of our confidential sources (sauces in this case -Ed?) that Chef Johnson had consumed a copious amount of alcohol shortly before entering the restaurant whereupon it caught fire rapidly thereafter. During this time, the co-owner was outside of the establishment with an injured knee until the captain had moved her to safety.
“I don’t know how she ended up there. All I know is in being the first to respond, I saw her there an’ carried her over to a safe place for EMS to carry out triage,” Captain Nathan Ferrer revealed. “We had a backdraft situation goin’ with also a lot of combustibles inside, so it was a very hazardous situation.”
Why the restaurant would have been intentionally set on fire is unknown other than the insurance payout being a potential motivator. The restaurant had performed well for the last two or three years, but it is common for restaurants to buckle under economic pressure and sell or go a more illicit route to collect an insurance payout.
Why the restaurant would have been intentionally set on fire is unknown other than the insurance pay out being a potential motivator. The restaurant had performed well for the last two or three years, but it is common for restaurants to buckle under economic pressure and sell or go a more illicit route to collect an insurance pay out.
Remembering Johnson
Chef Johnson sometimes stood outside of the restaurant strumming a guitar, playing bluesy tunes while on his break. A good musician, he was known to busk at street corners, smoking a cigarette, interacting with people on the sidewalks.
Not much is known about the man but in an earlier event hosted by the Flamin’ Cajun, the chef had revealed his passion for cooking to the Observer who were reporting on location at the time:
“I always been into cookin’ from a young age. It my way of makin’ people happy. I can’t do that personally, you see, not really one them stand up brothas. I used to have money fo’ drugs an’ drink but now I ain’t make a whole lotta money an’ I swore off robbin’ people so I went straight. I cook an’ I cook good. I take pride in it. You want that Creole feast or them Cajun treats, I got you. But you know what? When you in a kitchen witout a window–that really get to you. I ain’t got no view, I ain’t got no breeze. Truly, I deserve mo’. But I’m still bringin’ it to you, them good eats. Y’all best recognize talent. It ain’t always appreciated.”
With those ominous words, one might wonder if Pipes himself had anything to do with the fire or was he simply a hapless victim of an act of arson?
Our memories of the restaurant include: Robbery! Peppers! FDH Help! And many more; search Flamin Cajun on the Observer for more.
