Authorities are speculating a fire Thursday night that gutted much of the Dainty Pastry Shoppe in Latrobe may have resulted from a lightning strike.

“We won’t know for sure until we get in there. The State Police Fire Marshal is coming back Monday, but it looks as though the fire started at the back corner of the building where all the power comes in,” Latrobe Fire Chief John Brasile said Friday. “There’s a block that was knocked off there, and people down the street said they heard a loud boom that nearly knocked them off their seats.”

The fire was called in at 9:26 p.m. Firefighters were on the scene in minutes and had it out in about an hour. Latrobe firefighters were assisted by multiple departments, including crews from Unity and Greensburg.

Courtesy of Western PA Incident Audio/News Firefighters battle a fire at the Dainty Pastry Shoppe in downtown Latrobe on Thursday.  

Damage from the intense heat was extensive. Although the storefront at 339 Depot Street appeared unscathed, Brasile said the fire gutted about two thirds of the interior of the building, including a production area in the back.

Co-owner Curt Colaianne, a third-generation baker, was optimistic the family business, a fixture in Latrobe for 74 years, will be back in operation later this year. Over the years, it has relocated a few times, but Depot Street has been home since 1975.

“We’re down, but we’re not out,” he said, standing beneath an image of his late father that adorns the Depot Street entrance to the bakery. “We’ve always been heavily insured because of the nature of the business. I’ve already had people calling offering locations. We’re just waiting for the insurance company to tell us what we can do. We probably will be down for a few weeks until we find out what we can start on.”

Colaianne’s grandfather launched the business in 1947 on Miller Street, behind his home.

His mother, 89-year-old Juanita Colaianne, took over in 1971 and operated the bakery with her husband, Robert, before the third generation took over. She shared her son’s optimism.

“I’m just so grateful. I watched those (firefighters) come in last night. God knows what he’s doing,” she said.

Curt Colaianne, who has been working in the family business for 50 years, owns it with his brother, Dave.

They said firefighters were able to salvage treasured historic family photos of the business that decorated the shop and saved their business office and the second floor apartment adjacent to the shop where Dave lives.

Jeff Himler | Tribune-Review Firefighters enter apartments as multiple departments battle a blaze at the adjacent Dainty Pastry Shoppe on Thursday in downtown Latrobe.  

The bakery long has been a part of life in the Latrobe area, providing everything from wedding cakes and Christmas cookies to specialty orders for restaurants. Stories about the bakers’ sweet treats abound, including the tale of how Robert Colaianne once finished decorating a wedding cake from his hospital bed rather than let a customer down on her big day.

The bakery underwent a multi-year renovation project administered through the Latrobe Community Revitalization Program’s facade grant program a few years ago.

The exterior brick was repointed and cleaned and a new entrance added. A roof overhang was removed. Added were an awning, signs and gooseneck lighting. The interior was updated with bistro seating and European-style bakery cases.

Curt Colaianne said the feed from cameras inside the bakery that are saved on a computer in the office may hold more hints to the origin of the fire.

Standing in front of a sign that advertised bakery hours and the explanation that the business is closed Sundays because “God’s service is better than ours,” Colaianne said he has been overwhelmed with the out-pouring of support.

“People have been reaching out asking what they can do for us. All we can ask for now is prayers,” he said.

Brasile said the bakery has been a staple in the community for as long as he can remember.

“Everybody buys their baked good there,” he said. “This is a wound the entire community will feel. The wound will heal, but the scar will be there.”

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