Humboldt Bay Fire press release:

On 09/14/19 at 3:32 A.M. units from Humboldt Bay Fire responded to a reported structure fire on the 1300 block of Fourth Street. The first arriving units found moderate smoke coming from the roof of one wing of the Super 8 Motel. There were several people on the second-floor balcony area which had smoke coming from two second- floor rooms and two first floor rooms.

Crews immediately began evacuating occupants from the hotel and simultaneously attacked the fire. Fire was found to be burning in concealed spaces between the first and second floors, in the walls, and attic spaces. Humboldt Bay Fire accessed the roof and ventilated the structure to remove heat and smoke to aid in controlling the fire. A second alarm was requested as the initial resources had been committed to the evacuation and firefighting efforts. Those additional resources helped to bring the fire under control within 30 minutes. A third alarm was initiated to provide coverage of Humboldt Bay Fire’s response area.

After controlling the fire, crews remained on scene for about two hours to extinguish any remaining hot spots and to investigate the fire. All occupants of the affected wing were relocated by the motel owners to a nearby motel. There were no injuries to civilians or firefighters. The fire caused an estimated $100,000 damage. The cause of the fire appears to have been a malfunctioning bathroom ceiling fan.

Humboldt Bay Fire would like to thank the Arcata Fire Protection District, Samoa Fire Protection District, Loleta Fire Protection District and the Fortuna Fire Protection District for their assistance with controlling the fire. City Ambulance and Pacific Gas and Electric also responded to the incident and remained on scene for assistance as needed.