A fire that started in a shed next door tore through Robert's Lafitte, Galveston's historic LGBTQ+ bar, Friday evening, sending two people to the hospital and leaving the beloved Avenue Q institution scorched for the second time in months. Firefighters were called to the area near 25th Street and Avenue Q after reports of a shed fire threatening nearby structures, and the flames didn't stop there.
According to Click2Houston, two people were hospitalized after the fire damaged the bar. Firefighters were dispatched shortly after 7 p.m. to the area of 25th Street and Avenue Q, as reported by galvnews.com. Crews reported the fire spread from a one-story utility shed to an adjacent two-story building and Robert's Lafitte at 2501 Avenue Q, the outlet noted.
Flames Climbed From The Roof Into The Attic
Firefighters reported flames reaching the roof of the two-story structure, and later indicated the fire had extended into the attic, per the same account. Emergency medical personnel were also requested for a patient who dispatch traffic described as conscious, alert and breathing, though the extent of injuries was not immediately available in that reporting. The cause of the fire remained under investigation Friday evening, the report added.
Galveston Fire Department confirmed the fire began in a shed next door to Robert's Lafitte before spreading to the bar itself, according to Click2Houston. The blaze comes less than three months after another fire damaged the same property in July, the station's report noted, a detail that will likely deepen concern among the bar's regulars and supporters about the building's condition.
A Texas LGBTQ+ Landmark With A Rough Recent Stretch
Robert's Lafitte holds a singular place in Texas LGBTQ+ history. The bar opened in 1965 simply as Lafitte's and acquired its full name five years later when it was bought by Robert Mainor, according to them.us. Mainor, who died in 2022, was inspired to buy the bar in 1970, the outlet reported, and it has since been described by texasmonthly.com as Galveston's oldest continuously running gay bar and reportedly the oldest in the state.
The bar had already been navigating a difficult stretch before Friday's fire. Them.us reported in May that the bar needed to raise at least $10,000 to cover repairs, after the Galveston County Health District and Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission stepped in and demanded the bar be brought up to code. Those pressures, layered atop the July fire and now this latest blaze, underscore just how much strain has been placed on the aging building in recent months.
As of Friday evening, investigators had not determined what sparked the shed fire or how extensively the flames damaged Robert's Lafitte's interior. Galveston officials have not released further updates on the condition of the two people hospitalized or on the bar's status moving forward.
