Category Archives: Hotel / Motel

Hotel / Motel

Astoria, OR – Arson fire at Comfort Suites hotel extinguished with help from sprinkler system

A homeless man has been indicted in connection with a gas leak and fire at the Comfort Suites in Astoria last September. Matthew Jay Burke, 26, allegedly removed a plug from a gas meter near the hotel. Natural gas eventually leaked into and outside of the building on Lief Erikson Drive, causing a spark outside. Flames from the fire extended into the laundry room. The fire was extinguished after a water pipe burst and a ceiling sprinkler activated, causing several inches of water to flood the ground floor. The incident caused the hotel to temporarily close.

Dozens of guests from 75 rooms were evacuated and transferred to other hotels in Astoria and Warrenton. No injuries were reported. Burke was indicted in late January but has been held in a California jail for a separate probation violation. It is unclear whether Burke intended to cause a fire at the hotel or simply damage property. He has been charged with eight counts of recklessly endangering another person and two counts of first-degree criminal mischief.

“Frankly, the motel was full,” Clatsop County Deputy District Attorney Ron Brown said. “The risk to the public could’ve been pretty substantial.” Burke has yet to be transferred to the Clatsop County Jail, and an arraignment has not been scheduled.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Warren, MI – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in controlling fire at Extended Stay America hotel

Warren Fire Department investigators believe an electrical problem in a bathroom vent fan may have sparked an early morning blaze Thursday at a city hotel that forced the evacuation of approximately 100 guests. Officials credited employees of the Extended Stay America, on Civic Center Drive, east of Van Dyke Avenue and north of 12 Mile Road, with helping patrons escape the burning building shortly after 3 a.m.

Flames in the ceiling of a third-floor unit spread into the upper portion of the three-story building and broke through the roof, Warren Fire Commissioner Wilburt McAdams said. Firefighters cut through a portion of the roof in order to determine whether flames had spread across other upper areas of the hotel. The fire triggered an internal alarm system, and employees who began checking the building noticed smoke on the third floor.

“They knew right away it was not a false alarm and not someone playing games, and immediately began knocking on doors telling people to get out,” McAdams said. All of the approximately 100 hotel guests got out safely without injury. Firefighters extinguished the flames in approximately 20 minutes, the commissioner said. No injuries were reported. The blaze caused severe damage to the bathroom where the fire started and the adjoining guest room, which had not been rented to a patron Wednesday night. The hotel sustained smoke damage and several rooms on the second floor had significant damage from water.

McAdams said the sprinkler system had activated in the bathroom where the fire began and smoke alarms in the building functioned properly. The hotel is located just south of the Warren Police Department and Warren City Hall. Most of the displaced guests were relocated to other hotels in the area. A Warren Fire inspector was still at the scene after 9 a.m. “The fire does not appear to be suspicious or arson. It appears to be electrical in nature,” McAdams said. “We’re very thankful that once again we avoided any kind of serious incident and that it was able to be brought under control in a few minutes,” he added.

Hotel / Motel

Atlantic City, NJ – Fire on 44th floor of Tropicana Casino and Resort contained by sprinkler system

Four floors of the Tropicana Atlantic City’s West Tower were temporarily evacuated last Wednesday morning when a fire broke out in a hotel room.  Fire Chief Scott Evans said the fire broke out just before 10 a.m., in a room on the 44th floor.  Evans said a Tropicana employee used a fire extinguisher to put out the room fire before firefighters arrived. The hotel room bed and bathroom were both on fire. The hotel’s sprinkler system kept the fire from spreading, said Evans. The fire was put out by 10:34 a.m.  Smoke quickly filled the hotel room hallways and adjacent rooms. Crews then worked to remove smoke from the building, which proved difficult because the hotel windows do not open. Fans were used throughout the emergency staircase to push smoke out to the roof.

Guests from the 43rd, 44th, 45th and 46th floors were evacuated for safety reasons. Evans said guests of 27 rooms on the 44th floor are being relocated to other hotel rooms. The three other floors were allowed to return to their hotel rooms.  Evans said one hotel employee was taken to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center’s City Campus for treatment of smoke inhalation. The employee’s condition was not released.  A spokeswoman for Tropicana said the fire was immediately put out. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Hotel / Motel

Fort St. John, BC, Canada – Laundry fire at Super 8 Hotel put out by sprinkler system

Firefighters in Fort St. John were called out to a small laundry room fire at the Super 8 Hotel.  Fire Chief Fred Burrows said that crews were called out to the hotel in the 9500 block of Alaska Road North at approximately 6:30 in the morning. Burrows said that a small fire had broken out in the hotel’s laundry room and that the small fire was extinguished by the hotel’s sprinkler system by the time firefighters arrived.  Burrows said the hotel’s occupants were evacuated to the hotel’s lobby when the fire alarm sounded and were given the all-clear to return to their rooms once crews ensured that the fire was put out. The hotel’s General Manager Lourdes Samodio said that the incident lasted only roughly five minutes and that no one was hurt in the incident. She declined to comment further on the matter.  Burrows said that the laundry itself sustained minor damage and that apart from the appliances and cleaning supplies stored in the room, the rest of the hotel was unscathed. According to Burrows, the cause of the fire is still under investigation, but that the fire at this point is not deemed suspicious.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Parsippany, NJ – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in extinguishing laundry room fire at Hampton Inn

Rainbow Lakes Volunteer Fire District 2 along with the Mount Tabor Volunteer Fire District 1 were dispatched to the Hampton Inn & Suites, 3737 Route 46 for an activated fire alarm at 11:33 a.m. on Monday, January 15.  While responding the dispatcher got a call stating there was a fire on top of the water heater in the laundry room.  Mutual aid was requested and prior to getting water on the fire the sprinkler activated extinguishing the bulk of the fire.  The building was evacuated and the evacuation of the above floors was ensured by members of the Parsippany Police Department.

The building was checked to ensure the fire did not spread. Members on scene ventilated the entire building as smoke had spread throughout the common areas on all floors. There were no injuries and the hotel resumed operations.

In addition to Rainbow Lakes Volunteer Fire District 2, Mount Tabor Volunteer Fire District 1, Parsippany-Troy Hills Volunteer Fire Department District 5, Parsippany Volunteer Fire District 4 Rapid Intervention Team, Boonton Township Fire Dept Rapid Intervention Team, Parsippany Police Department, Par-Troy Emergency Medical Services and Parsippany Fire Prevention were dispatched to the scene.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Myrtle Beach, SC – Arson fire at hotel contained to room of origin by sprinkler system

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The Horry County Police Department arrested and charged a man in connection to a fire that displaced dozens of hotel guests in Horry County. According to J. Reuben Long Detention Center booking records, Tracy William Nelson, 45, of Myrtle Beach, was charged with second degree arson. Horry County Fire Rescue responded to the fire Tuesday evening at City Studios Hotel, located at 401 Hospitality Lane in Myrtle Beach. Responding crews say the fire was confined to a room on the second floor. A sprinkler system activation helped keep from spreading.

An official report from the Horry County Police Department says officers were “informed that it appeared a fire was started intentionally, due to a stove-top burner being left on with a box on top of it.” According to the report, officers were told no one was staying on the second floor because of ongoing renovations, with the exception of people hired to help with the project. Guests at City Studios Hotel were relocated to different hotels in the area, according to Horry County police. No injuries were reported. Nelson remains in jail Wednesday night on a $10,000 bond.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Colorado Springs, CO – Hotel sprinkler system activates in response to dumpster fire started outside

A man was arrested Sunday for allegedly setting several dumpsters on fire and vandalizing cars in downtown Colorado Springs.

Police responded about 7 p.m. to a call about a man starting dumpster fires and damaging cars. One fire was so big that it triggered the sprinkler system at a local hotel. Witnesses followed the suspect, later identified as Steven Roche, 51, to East Bijou and North Tejon streets.

Police say Roche became difficult when they tried to contact him. Police said Roche apparently used a rock to damage several cars.

He was arrested on suspicion of felony criminal mischief as well as resisting arrest and two counts of fourth-degree arson, all misdemeanors.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Lake Delton, WI – Fire at Great Wolf Lodge contained to one room by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Emergency crews and firefighters were dispatched to a fire at Great Wolf Lodge around 6:15 on Sunday morning.

Firefighters arrived to discover guests evacuating the hotel and encountered smoke on the second floor. The fire was contained to one unoccupied room by the building’s sprinkler system, but five rooms sustained significant water damage.

At the time of the fire, 400 of the 435 rooms at the Great Wolf Lodge were occupied. There were no injuries to hotel guests or first responders.

Crews remained on scene for three hours putting out hot spots and investigating.

The cause of the fire has not been determined, but foul play is not suspected.

Preliminary damage to the hotel is approximately $100,000.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Austin, TX – Sprinkler system controls car fire in W Hotel parking garage

A car fire at a downtown parking garage has prompted the closure of a portion of 3rd Street Sunday afternoon.

Austin Fire Department officials said crews were called to the W Hotel parking garage at 200 Lavaca St. at around 2:45 p.m. Firefighters made quick work of the blaze as it was confined to a single vehicle and a sprinkler system helped dampen the flames before emergency workers’ arrival.

But the fire set off a series of related events led by the road closure at 3rd Street between Guadalupe and Lavaca streets. A nearby Starbucks at 3rd and Lavaca streets reportedly was evacuated as a precautionary measure.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Greensboro, NC – Motel fire caused by cigarette doused by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Sprinklers doused a fire inside a motel room and kept it from spreading to others, firefighters said. Firefighters responded about noon Saturday to the In-Town Suites at 501 Americhase Drive for a reported fire. Chief Jim Boggs with the Greensboro Fire Department said some of the fire trucks that were en route were called off because the sprinklers took care of the fire. He said the fire was accidental and caused by a cigarette.

“It was controlled pretty quickly,” he said. The fire was contained to one room at the motel which had 133 guests at the time, including the one in the damaged room, according to a fire department news release. The occupant of the damaged room had to be relocated. Boggs said there was some fire and water damage to the room. No injuries were reported. To avoid such fires, the department urges people to use fire safe cigarettes, smoke outside and not smoke when sleepy or after having consumed medicine or alcohol. Firefighters also say people should check furniture before going to bed to make sure smoldering cigarette butts have not fallen out of sight.