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Fire burned through the roof of the Lone Star restaurant on Roosevelt Avenue early Friday morning, Aug. 8. The building has been deemed a total loss.Click to enlarge

Fire investigators believe a neon sign may have sparked the fire that ravaged the Lone Star restaurant on Roosevelt Avenue early Friday morning, Aug. 8. Click to enlarge

A Middletown firefighter is listed in fair condition after being seriously injured when he tripped and fell at the scene of a fire at Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon, according to a hospital spokesperson.

Karl Gaston was transported to Atrium Medical Center after being injured at the blaze, which broke out around 1 a.m. Friday, Aug. 8 and took firefighters several hours to extinguish.

Middletown Fire Marshal Brent Hughes said the fire is believed to be electrical in nature and the building is a "total loss."

Lone Star CEO Marc Beuhler said company officials will be meeting with insurance agents in the coming days to decide whether to rebuild or renovate the restaurant. Lone Star's 30 to 40 employees will be given two weeks of pay and will be transferred to one of the four other southwest Ohio locations, Beuhler said.

Hughes said the blaze started on the side of the building with a large neon sign that faces Roosevelt Avenue. Hughes said he couldn't definitively say the sign was the source of the fire, but did indicate the fire began in that area.

The fire remains under investigation, he said.

Firefighters were called to Lone Star at 6780 Roosevelt Ave. after smoke was reportedly seen billowing from the roof. Crews from Middletown and Franklin responded.