Hook lobster company fire still under investigation

By Globe staff

One week after an early morning fire destroyed the landmark James Hook & Co. lobster business in downtown Boston, investigators were back at the site today, still searching for where the fire started and how the ferocious blaze began.

The ramshackle building trimmed with razor wire at the corners of Northern and Atlantic avenues was ruined by the early morning fire, which also destroyed an estimated 60,000 pounds of lobsters warehoused at the facility as the family-owned company was preparing to ship to its retail and wholesale customers.

The Hook facility is in the process of being dismantled, and fire department spokesman Stephen F. MacDonald said today that investigators are taking advantage of that work to peer inside the remnants of the wood and corrugated metal building.

"Fire investigators have been on site several times this week, continuing to go through the rubble, to come up with what started the fire,'' said MacDonald. "It's just a slow process because obviously we are working with contractors. As they peel away and pull away some of the rubble, it reveals more of (the interior) of the building.''

Hook family members said the building was insured and that the multigeneration family business will be rebuilt in its downtown location, an idea strongly backed by Mayor Thomas M. Menino.

"We're gonna reopen as soon as the site's cleared," said Al Hook, one of the owners. "We'll get a couple of modulars and open the retail right back up as soon as we can."

Hook said the family plans to rebuild its wholesale and retail business on the site, adding some outdoor tables for dining. "Something simple," Hook said. "Simple and fun."

Fire officials have estimated damage at $5 million, while the Hook family has said the lost lobsters were worth as much as a $1 million.

“The owners have been very cooperative,’’ MacDonald said. The seven alarm fire was discovered around 3 a.m. last Friday, and more than 135 firefighters and a scuba team were needed to control and then extinguish the fire.

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