Demolishing the fire-damaged back extension at Uogashi, which appears to be permanently closed

EVG regular Lola Sáenz shared this photo from Saturday ... showing workers removing the fire-damaged structure occupied by Uogashi, the Japanese restaurant at 188 First Ave. between 11th Street and 12th Street.

Thankfully only the back extension needed to come down in the aftermath of the six-alarm fire in the early-morning hours of Oct. 3. DOB officials said that the rest of the five-story building was structurally sound.

The Uogashi website now lists "permanently closed" under their hours of operation. The Tree Bistro next door is still temporarily out of commission as well due to damage to their rear garden.

Officials said they believe the fire, which injured 17 people, including 14 firefighters, began in the restaurant. An exact cause has not been made public just yet.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A look at the fire-damaged Uogashi; plus video of when the fire started at 188 1st Ave.

Post-fire updates on 1st Avenue

Watch this drone footage of the fire at 188 1st Ave.

[Updating] Post fire, 1 lane of northbound traffic returns to 1st Avenue

[Updating] Report of injuries during major fire at 188 1st Ave.

Report: 188 1st Ave. survives fire; back extension must be demolished

Report: 188 1st Ave. survives fire; back extension must be demolished

There were concerns about the future of 188 First Ave. after last week's 6-alarm fire. There was speculation that the fire-damaged five-story building might need to be demolished here between 11th Street and 12th Street.

However, city officials said that No. 188 withstood the blaze and won't need to come down.

As Patch reported:

Department of Buildings engineers "have determined that the structural stability of [the building] was unaffected by the fire," according to department spokesman Andrew Rudansky. The structure won't face the wrecking ball.

However, Rudansky said that the extension behind Uogashi will need to be removed...


[Photo on Oct. 3 by Hillary Johnson]

There are eight apartments in the building. Residents have been allowed back in to retrieve personal belongings, but No. 188 is still under a full vacate order, per the DOB.

Officials said they believe the fire, which injured 17 people, including 14 firefighters, began in the restaurant. An exact cause has not been determined.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A look at the fire-damaged Uogashi; plus video of when the fire started at 188 1st Ave.

Post-fire updates on 1st Avenue

Watch this drone footage of the fire at 188 1st Ave.

[Updating] Post fire, 1 lane of northbound traffic returns to 1st Avenue

[Updating] Report of injuries during major fire at 188 1st Ave.

A look at the fire-damaged Uogashi; plus video of when the fire started at 188 1st Ave.

[Photo by JK Clarke]

As you likely know, what would eventually be a six-alarm fire broke out in the early morning hours Wednesday at 188 First Ave. between 11th Street and 12th Street.

FDNY officials have said that they believe the blaze started on the ground floor, which is occupied by the sushi restaurant Uogashi.

As these photos by Steven yesterday show, Uogashi, which opened here in December 2016, sustained major damage...








[Photo of the damaged rear-portion of Uogashi by Hillary Johnson]

It's too early to know when, or if, the restaurant might return. Uogashi's website is currently offline, and their voice-message system is full. No. 188 remains under a full-vacate order.



The FDNY is continuing their investigation, and have not publicly announced the cause of the fire.

Meanwhile, EVG reader Hillary Johnson, who lives near 188 First Ave., shot this video showing the start of the fire just before 2 a.m. (Firefighters had already been called, and were en route to the scene.)



In the video, you can see that the rooftop ventilation fan on No. 188's setback is on fire.

In total, there were 17 reported injuries, including 14 firefighters. The victims mostly sustained minor injuries, according to published reports.