A fire apparently set or caused by a burglar or burglars will likely cost Battery Park Book Exchange & Champagne Bar, Asheville, N.C., about $50,000, the Asheville Citizen-Times reported. The costs include damaged books, cleanup and lost business.
The break-in occurred early Friday morning, and somehow a long unused vacuum cleaner was pulled out of a closet and caught fire, which set off sprinklers that damaged 2,000-3,000 books. Owner Thomas Wright told the newspaper that the damage occurred in the mezzanine in the biography, religion and metaphysics sections. He lamented particularly the loss of the books on metaphysics, which the paper wrote is "a collection that the store had recently beefed up and was selling well."
The burglars took about $500 in cash and some alcohol, according to police. Wright commented: "It's Dumb and Dumber break into the bookstore. They left $10 rolls of quarters, and that's the most valuable thing I have. We've got to feed the meters."
Battery Park Book Exchange & Champagne Bar is a large, inviting, elegant store in the Grove Arcade specializing in used books that features a wine, sparkling wine and champagne bar.