The owners of McHenry’s Riverside Bake Shop, through their insurance carrier, are suing the roofing company that was working on the building when a fire broke out.

The Riverside Bake Shop has been closed since the Jan. 18 fire that severely damaged the building at 1309-1313 Riverside Drive. Reeses Barkery and Pawtique, which leased half of the structure, has since reopened in a temporary space nearby at 3314 Pearl St.

The suit was filed on April 17 on behalf of Charles Rice and Riverside Bake Shop Inc. by Sentinel Insurance Company LTD. The suit is asking for a jury trial and damages in excess of $50,000.

According to the McHenry Township Fire Protection District’s final report on the fire, there was an estimated at $1 million in damage to the building and $500,000 in losses to its contents. Both the Riverside Bake Shop and Reeses Barkery and Pawtique had losses from the fire.

The suit claims that APR Roofing, based in Chicago, was negligent while performing work on the roof. The company’s attorneys have not yet responded to the initial complaint filed in McHenry County Court.

The fire district’s report, completed on Jan. 29, ruled the fire was accidental. The report noted that the torches used to lay down a new tar roof heated old, dry wood boards underneath the roofing materials “until they reached their ignition point,” according to the report.