BA Residents Encouraged To Eat Out To Help Restaurants Recoup Losses

Just days after a boil order closed down all Broken Arrow restaurants, city leaders urged people to eat out for lunch Friday, and to bring a friend or two with them.

The goal is to help businesses and people who rely on tips to recoup some of what they lost following that major water line break.

Anything that Broken Arrow restaurants can do to let people know they're open, they're doing.

And the Broken Arrow Chamber of Commerce pitched in as well, deeming Friday "Take Your Employees to Lunch Day."

After a city-wide restaurant shutdown on Wednesday, because of the boil order, each restaurant owner we talked to tells us they lost thousands of dollars in revenue.

6/13/2013 Related Story: In Relief Effort, Broken Arrow Deems Friday 'Take Your Employees To Lunch Day'

Part-time employees were out of luck, too, forced to take an unpaid day off because there was nothing to do.

People who were eating here in Broken Arrow Friday were happy to help.

"I love the idea of local people helping local people, instead of reaching up to a higher level of government for assistance or whatever," said diner Joshua Hascol. "I love the idea of local businesses helping out one another."

Joe Davidson of Oklahoma Joe's said he's going to help his part-timers recover some of their losses by giving them odd jobs to do around the restaurant.

Other restaurant owners we've spoken to are going to claim some of this week's losses on their insurance.