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A three-alarm fire erupted on the rooftop of a downtown Tampa hotel Thursday (Jan. 26) evening, causing the evacuation of hundreds of guests and an estimated $50,000 in damages.
No injuries were reported.
A Tampa Fire Rescue official told D+D News that the fire atop the Marriot Waterside Hotel was caused by an electrical malfunction in one of the decorative light columns on the southwest corner of the roof of the building.
The fire was then fueled by the decorative covering and frame of the column, according to Jason Penny, Tampa Fire Rescue’s public information officer.
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Tampa Fire Rescue |
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An electrical malfunction in one of the decorative light columns on the roof was said to have caused the blaze.
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Initial reports indicated that the fire atop the hotel was caused by debris from roofing work completed earlier in the day. Additional information about the roofing work was not immediately available Friday (Jan. 27) morning.
“The [fire marshal’s] investigation found that the roof work occurred in a different location and was unrelated to the fire as was earlier reported,” Penny said in a statement.
High-Rise Fire
The fire ignited about 8:00 p.m. local time, local reports said. Witnesses told a local ABC news television station that they heard a “loud pop” and said they saw the flames on the Marriott.
Dramatic images and videos posted to social media show the roof engulfed in leaping orange flames. Firefighters reportedly walked up 27 flights of stairs to the roof of the building to put out the blaze.
The hotel guests were evacuated and after an hour were given the all clear to return to their rooms, ABC Action News reported.
The blaze was contained to the southwest corner of the roof and caused moderate to major fire, heat and smoke damage to the lighting column and the west side of the parapet wall, Penny said.
The fire occurred just days before thousands of coatings professionals convene in Tampa for SSPC 2017, which kicks off Monday (Jan. 30)
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