by Jason Henry

Two fires Monday caused $5,000 in damage to an Italian restaurant on North Rosemead Boulevard, officials said. The 12:30 p.m. fires at Bella Italia in East San Gabriel appeared to be related, owner Franco Mele said. The cause remains under investigation. No one was injured.

Mele discovered the fires when he came to open the restaurant for the day.

"I opened the door and it was all dark inside," he said. Responding to Mele's call for help, firefighters immediately knocked out a ceiling blaze near the bar and a second 30 feet away in a storage room, Los Angeles County fire Battalion Chief Eleni Pappas said.

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Source: http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/