Live coverage: Four firefighters confirmed killed in Houston motel fire. Five others injured. Two in critical condition.
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Houston Fire Department
At 4:20 PM CDT a spokesman for the mayor’s office confirms four firefighters have been killed in today’s motel fire in Houston.
Four firefighters died in a five-alarm blaze that broke out at a restaurant Friday afternoon along U.S. 59 in southwest Houston, according to the mayor’s office.
Five firefighters were also reported injured, two critically, while fighting the blaze.
Four Houston firefighters died Friday while battling a 5-alarm blaze in a motel near the Southwest Freeway at Hillcroft. The bodies of three were found in the rubble of the Southwest Inn motel. A fourth apparently died at the hospital.
Sources say the search continues for others who haven’t been accounted for, but it’s not clear if they are firefighters.
In a heartwrenching scene, several firefighters gathered around a flag-draped casket in the middle of the burnt-out motel.
Six firefighters were rushed by ambulances to area hospitals. Medics were performing CPR on one of them as he was put into an ambulance.
At least one of the injured firefighters is in very critical condition, according to an HFD captain at the scene. He is at Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center. Two others were taken to Memorial Hermann Southwest, just blocks from the fire. Two more went to Memorial Hermann Northwest. They are reportedly in good condition.
EARLIER
At 4:00 PM CDT, The Houston Chronicle is reporting the following:
Three people died in a five-alarm blaze that broke out at a restaurant Friday afternoon along U.S. 59 in southwest Houston, according to the Harris County medical examiner’s office.
Six firefighters were reported injured, two critically, while fighting the blaze. The conditions of the injured are not available. It is unclear whether the fatalities are in addition to the injured.
Vanessa Trevino, supervisory forensic investigator with the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences said, “We do have three confirmed dead on scene.” She could not confirm any details about identities or occupation of the victims.
There has been a mayday in connection with this fire ongoing in Houston, Texas. Four five six firefighters are reported injured. News reports indicate CPR being done on at least one firefighter. At the initial press briefing at 1:25PM CDT an official reported four firefighters became lost. The rapid intervention team went in. All four have been found. Two are in critical condition.
About 20 minutes later KPRC-TV reported the following:
Officials said at least five firefighters have been transported to the hospital. Two of them are listed critical and two are listed at extremely critical. The fifth firefighter suffered a leg injury.
Dale Lezon, Houston Chronicle:
The fire broke out at Bhojan Restaurant at 6855 Southwest Freeway at about 12:09 p.m. and engulfed the neighboring Southwest Inn along the inbound Southwest Freeway near Hornwood, according to the Houston Fire Department. The flames also burned a sports bar and disco.
Jeff Caynon, president of the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association, said he understood from field reports that the firefighters had been injured in a roof collapse.
“The roof collapsed. I don’t know if that was folks outside next to the structure or inside when it collapsed, but the collapse is going to be the cause,” Canyon said.
The fire broke out just before 12:30pm at the Southwest Inn along the Southwest Freeway near Hillcroft.
An HFD spokesperson says four firefighters had become lost, but all have since been recovered. Two of them are in critical condition, and two are in extremely critical condition. All four have been transported to area hospitals.
We’re hearing that a fifth firefighter injured his knee and was also taken to an area hospitals.
A five alarm fire broke out shortly after noon Friday, blowing smoke across the Southwest Freeway near Hillcroft and slowing traffic in both directions.
At least six firefighters were rushed by ambulances to area hospitals. Medics were performing CPR on one of them as he was put in an ambulance.
At least two of the injured firefighters are in critical condition, according to an HFD captain at the scene. He said earlier that four were critical. Two are at Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center. The other four were taken to Southwest Memorial Hospital, just blocks from the fire.
There’s no word on whether motel guests and employees have been accounted for.
Fire crews are battling a five-alarm fire at a southwest Houston hotel Friday afternoon.
Officials said the fire started around noon at the Southwest Inn in the 6800 block of the Southwest Freeway near Hornwood.
The fire started in the sports bar portion of the hotel.
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