BEMIDJI — When a St. Patrick’s Day fire damaged an apartment above Brigid’s Pub, it first appeared the popular downtown Bemidji bar and restaurant would only be closed for a short time.

But three weeks later, as repair work was taking place upstairs, a water pipe froze and burst, causing major damage to Brigid’s and forcing a nearly five-month closure.

The pub, located at 317 Beltrami Ave. NW, reopened on Aug. 3 with a new floor both behind the bar and in the dining area and a new bar top.

“Luckily enough I was in the building and caught (the water leak) early,” said Brigid’s co-owner Travis Glass. “It really could have been a lot worse.”

Glass and Jake Robinson purchased the business in 2017. In addition to the pub, they bought the building next door which houses Two Hearts Designs bridal and formal wear shop, along with five upstairs apartments and The Hair Affair beauty salon.

March 17 was a typical bustling St. Patrick’s Day in downtown Bemidji. Both Brigid’s Pub and its across-the-street neighbor, Keg N’ Cork, were filled with customers. Spectators watched the annual World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade from one pub to the other on Beltrami Avenue.

But at 7:27 that evening, the Bemidji Fire Department responded to the report of a fire in an apartment above Brigid’s. Firefighters found smoke billowing from a second-story window. They located and quickly extinguished the flames.

Firefighters were on the scene for six hours. The apartment and its contents sustained extensive damage. An investigation conducted by the Bemidji Fire Department and the Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office determined that the cause of the apartment fire was related to an e-cigarette.

“Damage from the fire was total loss to the source apartment, with very little smoke damage to the other apartments,” Glass said.

On March 18, Brigid’s posted this on Facebook:

“Yesterday there was a small fire in an apartment above Brigid’s. Thankfully, nobody was hurt and the Bemidji Fire Department did an excellent job of containing the damage. While there is some work to do on the adjacent properties, Brigid’s Pub was not impacted. We will be closed today to let the clean-up crew do their job.”

That optimism waned in early April when the pipe break sent water cascading into the bar area of Brigid’s. That led to several weeks of remodeling and lots of elbow grease for the owners, who had already been through pandemic-induced challenges. It was closed during most of the busy summer months, which this year also included Bemidji’s All School Reunion.

“I was in for day-to-day operations,” Glass said. “Lots of cleaning, organizing, making sure bills were still getting paid.”

Glass and Robinson were buoyed through the closure by customers who showed their support.

“Our regular customers and always the new customers as well are the greatest,” Glass said. “We have a great community around us of the most supportive and generous people. We’ve had some hardships the last two years, and that loyal community really helps out as much as they can.”

Meanwhile, the owner of Two Hearts Design is waiting for repairs to be completed so she can move back into her shop.

“Right now I can’t do anything until my spot is available in that building,” said Govinder Davgun, who has owned Two Hearts since 1998. She is temporarily working out of the Freeberg and Grund building at 321 Beltrami Ave. NW.

“I don’t have much stock,” Davgun said. “I’m still in business. I do have some dresses, just not all of them yet.”

Now that Brigid’s Pub has reopened, it’s hosting the popular Monday night trivia contest, the Tuesday Irish music jam and live music, beginning Saturday, Sept. 3 with The Occasionals on stage for a reopening party from 6 to 9 p.m.

“Brigid's has always supported local Bemidji music and culture,” shared Eric Carlson, the band’s leader. “Let's show them how happy we are to have them back.”

Glass said he hopes the pub can bring back open mic nights on Thursdays in the near future, and he’s happy for the return of live music.

“It’s great to get that facet of the pub back in motion,” Glass said. “It’s a huge part of who we are and what makes Brigid’s the special place it is.”