Niles restaurant evacuated, waitresses continue serving coffee

NILES, Mich. -- Usually, where there's smoke, there's fire, but that wasn't the case in Niles on Tuesday.

People evacuated the Plaza Restaurant because of heavy smoke.

Firefighters arrived around 8:30 a.m. They searched the 11th St. restaurant for about an hour, but didn't find any flames.

When we stopped by, it was raining pretty hard, but customers stayed warm, thanks to an overhang and a little coffee.

"We're holding up pretty well. We brought coffee pots with us to serve our customers that were already out and sitting," said waitress Ellen Whit-Vaughn.

Firefighters said an air conditioning motor burned up, causing smoke to fill the restaurant.