ST. FRANCISVILLE – Bad wiring is likely the cause of a fire that destroyed the restaurant on the grounds of the historic and haunted Myrtles Plantation but an exact cause will be hard to ever figure out.

State fire investigators took over the investigation after the blaze Wednesday. Investigators said the fire started in an office after someone left the area ahead of the lunch rush. Workers nearby heard sounds and someone saw flames in the office. Attempts to deal with the fire with a fire extinguisher were futile, and the flames spread quickly.

Employees evacuated everyone inside and waited for firefighters.

Wednesday's fire was the fifth time in the last five years fire crews were dispatched to this area of the grounds. Previously, people reported smaller, electrical fires.

“Much of that wiring is dated,” an investigator told WBRZ.

 The blaze at the restaurant appeared to have gutted the eatery. The plantation was not damaged. A fire in 2014 damaged another building on the property, too.

A business official with the Myrtles operation said Thursday, the restaurant will be rebuilt. A new diner could be open by Summer 2018, they said.

Although, a new restaurant will not be under the same management. WBRZ learned the operators of The Carriage House Restaurant were set to be replaced this year. A replacement tenant was scheduled to take over the space, WBRZ learned.

Plantation managers and investigators are leaving the fire at the assumption it's electrical and nothing more ghoulish – there were no indications ghosts were involved, an investigator responded, humoring questions from people about if the storied haunts influenced flames.

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