Friday fire forces evacuation of Alton hotel – Alton Telegraph

John Badman,Staff Writer

May 13, 2023Updated: May 13, 2023 11:39a.m.

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate

Family members take pictures as guests to a 10-year-old's birthday party were allowed to sit in a fire truck Friday after a one-room fire on the first floor at the Alton Best Western Premier hotel. Thefire was confined to one room and the hotel was evacuated for more than 40 minutes.

The party moved outside for a group using the meeting rooms Friday night after a fire broke out in a guest room at the Best Western Premier hotel, 3559 College Ave. in Alton. The fire was confined to one room and the hotel was evacuated for more than 40 minutes.

ALTON Firefighters were called to the Best Western Premier hotel at 3559 College Ave. in Altonat 9:18 p.m. Friday for a one-room fire.

According to authorities, a fire in the couch of an unoccupied room set off the hotel's sprinkler system, which extinguished the blaze before firefighters arrived. The hotel immediately evacuated more than 100 people including those who hadgathered for a function in a meeting room and a 10-year-old's birthday pool party.

Tired guests wanting to sleep stood and sat outside of the hotel on all four sides. Firefighters scrambled to shut off the sprinkler system as water poured out of the room and into the first floor hallway.

The room was reported to have been heavily damaged. Fire department officials on Friday night said they had not determined how the fire started in the unoccupied room.

Firefighters made sure the fire was completely out before guests were allowed back in the hotel at 10:01p.m.

The night wasn't a complete disappointment, as firefighters let the birthday girl and her guests sit in a fire truck before they left.

The cause of the fire is under investigation; no injuries were reported.

John Badman is a 1982 graduate of SIU-Carbondale, with a major in cinema and photography and a minor in law enforcement administration of justice. He has worked at The Telegraph in Alton full-time for 39 years and has been named the National Press Photographers Association's Region-5 Photographer of the Year six times.

Visit link:
Friday fire forces evacuation of Alton hotel - Alton Telegraph