Investigators have ruled out arson as the cause of the fire that ripped through the Port Royal seafood market Sunday morning and forced one of the area's most popular restaurants to close indefinitely.



The fire started in the market and grew between the first and second floors in the market's back corner, Beaufort-Port Royal Fire Department Capt. John Robinson said. A final report has not been completed, but investigators were not able to rule out an electrical issue as the cause of the blaze that destroyed the market, which was newly renovated and had only been open to the public only a few weeks.



Firefighters were on scene with an S.C. Law Enforcement Division arson investigator until late afternoon Sunday. Local investigators will get a final report from SLED and add it to photographs from the scene and their own report to complete the file.



Insurance companies will probably send their own investigators, Robinson said.



The market is off 11th Street on Battery Creek, adjacent to a warehouse and 11th Street Dockside restaurant. The restaurant has water and smoke damage and is closed until it is deemed safe to reopen.



As he sat in the parking lot of the restaurant Monday, owner Tom Oliva said he had no definite timetable for getting the location up and running again. Utilities have been shut off to the building and proper permits will be required once work is finished, he said.



Oliva's Dockside restaurant on Lady's Island remains open. Restaurant employees carried boxes of condiments and other perishable items to their cars to transport to Lady's Island on Monday.



Crime tape stretched across the area of the market. A burned out sedan sat next to the blaze site.



The fire was spotted by a driver on Russell Bell Bridge just after 5:30 a.m. Sunday. Firefighters from Beaufort-Port Royal, Burton Fire District, and Lady's Island-St. Helena fire districts responded as did units from Parris Island.



The fire was under control in 30 minutes but required four hours to fully extinguish, Beaufort-Port Royal Fire Chief Sammy Negron said.



Port Royal Mayor Samuel Murray said Monday he thinks the warehouse and market will have to be demolished. He said shrimpers can still come and go but there is no access to electricity and ice.



Town officials have said their primary concern is getting power back to Dockside and the restaurants employees back to work.



Dock and market manager Joey Morris said Sunday all the market's equipment was lost in the fire, including a large ice machine that manufactured 7,000 pounds per day and was essential for packing shrimp.



The affected buildings are owned by the S.C. State Ports Authority, but the town carries liability insurance and insured the contents, Murray said.



"I'm glad it's not arson because that was my concern," Murray said.



Port Royal in the past considered finding a private operator for its market and docks, which the town leases from the Ports Authority. Town Council voted down a deal with Sea Eagle Market to lease the docks last fall.

Follow reporter Stephen Fastenau at twitter.com/IPBG_Stephen.

Related content:

• Video: Seafood Market in ashes
• Port Royal seafood market lost in Sunday morning blaze + aftermath video, July 19, 2015
• Port Royal shrimp docks out of red, June 12, 2015

This story was originally published July 20, 2015 at 11:13 AM with the headline "Fire at Port Royal seafood market not arson, investigators say."