A Salt Lake City vegan barbecue business has been shut down, after the pitmaster’s medical emergency led to a fire that destroyed much of his equipment.
Chris Blatchford, owner and pitmaster for Blatch’s Vegan BBQ, was treated at an area hospital Wednesday and released, his wife, Joy, reported on the company’s Facebook and Instagram accounts. Blatchford suffered second-degree burns on his arms, chest and head.
According to the company’s social media, Blatchford — known as Chef Blatch — was in the family’s garage in the Avenues, where the barbecue pit is located. While setting up for the day’s menu, Blatchford, who has type 1 diabetes, fainted from low blood sugar.
In her posts, Joy Blatchford wrote that the fire burned “more than 80% of our equipment.” She ended her post by saying that