Fire Damages 'Big Bamboo'

KISSIMMEE (Orlando Sentinel) - The future of the Big Bamboo Lounge, a quirky bar on the West US Highway 192 tourist strip that closed late last year, is even more up in the air after a fire nearly destroyed the building last week. Osceola County fire officials are calling the bar a "total loss," though the walls didn't collapse. One of the owners, Nancy Duggan, said Tuesday that although she would still like to reopen the "Boo," she doesn't know what's going to happen. Duggan said she hadn't seen the lounge or a Fire Department report about the damage, although she plans to visit the bar this week. Housed in what was once a doctor's house, the Big Bamboo became a hangout for Walt Disney World employees and curious tourists. It was decorated with Disney employee name tags, business cards, newspaper clippings and foreign money and featured swing and jazz music and bartenders wearing Hawaiian shirts. Only cash was accepted, and there was no air conditioning. Out front sat a vintage military ambulance and a watchtower. Disney animators sometimes entertained other patrons by drawing Mickey Mouse and other characters on cocktail napkins. A fire report says homeless people trying to keep warm may have started the fire. Clothing was found inside, indicating people were living in the vacant building. It's unclear whether the building - which also was damaged during the 2004 hurricanes - can survive the most recent assault.