Firefighters responded to the Starbucks coffee shop, 1003 Gannon Drive, in Festus at 4:50 p.m. Monday afternoon, Aug. 5.
The store manager, Hannah Venable, said there was no fire, but firefighters were called to the scene due to what appeared to be smoke generated by a faulty piece of equipment.
“We had to evacuate,” she said. “Our ice machine – like the condenser – started smoking.”
Festus Fire Chief Jeff Broombaugh on Tuesday verified the ice machine did not create a fire, but he is not sure if what the machine emitted was smoke.
“There was no odorous smoke,” he said. “It could have been steam off the ice machine. I think it was condensation from the ice machine.”
Firefighters remained on scene for about 35 minutes, he said, and Starbucks employees were allowed to resume business operations.
“(The staff) went back in and reopened when we left,” he said.
Broombaugh said that had there been odorous smoke, health authorities would have needed to inspect the building before the coffee shop could reopen.
Firefighters from the Festus and Crystal City departments responded, with Crystal City bringing its truck with a large ladder.
Venable said only the ice machine appeared to have damage.
“There is no damage to anything but the ice machine,” she said.
Broombaugh said no injuries were reported.
He said the Crystal City and Herculaneum fire departments and the Dunklin, Hematite, Mapaville and Jefferson R-7 fire districts helped with the call, as did the Joachim-Plattin Ambulance District