‘Suspicious’ fire burns down coffee kiosk by King Hall 

A fire broke out Friday morning at the Cargo Coffee Co. kiosk next to the UC Davis School of Law, burning the kiosk to the ground.

UC Davis Fire Department, UC Davis Police and city of Davis Fire Department personnel responded to a call from the groundskeeper at the law school at approximately 6 a.m. By the time they arrived, the fire had already destroyed the kiosk, said Paul Pfotenhauer, public information officer for the campus fire department.

No other damage or injuries occurred outside the kiosk; however, the private owners of Cargo Coffee Co. estimated a loss of $30,000 in damage to structure and materials, according to an article by Dateline UC Davis.

Although fire department officials do not yet know the cause of the fire, Pfotenhauer said that they found suspicious materials at the scene of the fire that may indicate arson. The campus police department will be conducting an investigation with help from the Yolo County arson team. They expect to know more about the fire by next week.

“It was suspicious in nature, but we cannot reveal any more information than that because it could impact the investigation,” he said.

The kiosk was one of three locations on campus, including one by Olson Hall and one by Academic Surge. The owners told Dateline that they plan to rebuild the kiosk.

Friday also marked the first day of finals for law students at the graduate school. First-year law student Scott Judson said classrooms in King Hall were so smoky that students could not prepare inside the building for their 9 a.m. final.

“It was a really weird way to start finals week,” Judson said.

Judson added that most law students buy coffee, tea or pastries from the kiosk on a daily basis. He said that he has also seen many administrators from Mrak, including Chancellor Linda Katehi, buy coffee from the kiosk.

“I don’t think any law students [would have started the fire] because they really value their coffee, especially during finals,” he said. “I definitely utilize it and I don’t even drink coffee.”

LAUREN STEUSSY can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.