Topless cafe gets donations after fire

VASSALBORO, Maine, June 14 (UPI) -- Residents of an economically stressed area in Maine have embraced a topless coffee shop gutted by an arson fire, its owner said.

The Grand View Coffee Shop has reopened on a small scale, The Boston Globe reported Saturday. In one room that survived the fire with some damage, topless waitresses are supplying customers with coffee and doughnuts.

There is coffee service outside with all servers fully clothed.

"I've got to get the girls back to work," owner Donald Crabtree said.

Crabtree, who did not have insurance, has collected donations from former customers and area residents for the rebuilding effort. He said contributions have come from Canada and elsewhere in New England.

While some Vassalboro residents worried about the coffee shop when it opened in February, its months in business were quiet. But this month, after Crabtree applied for a permit to expand, an ambulance crew noticed smoke coming from the building in the middle of the night.

Crabtree and five members of his family, including two young children, were asleep inside and could have died of smoke inhalation if they had not been awakened.