No one was injured in a fire yesterday at the Villa Motel that took several local fire departments all day to extinguish.
The fire was first reported at about 5:00 a.m. in the pool area of the motel and in the units above the pool, according to a news release this morning from Nelson Fire and Rescue Services.
The motel, located just north of the Orange Bridge on Highway 3A, was immediately evacuated by Nelson fire and police departments.
Other local volunteer fire departments were called into service for water supply because there are no fire hydrants in the area of the motel and because of other obstacles the fire presented.
“Due to the ongoing challenges, over multiple hours, with getting water on the fire, additional resources were requested from (local volunteer fire departments),” the news release reads. “Firefighters and equipment from multiple departments were dispatched to complement the water shuttle and assist with hose lines for suppression.
“The construction of the building and the location of the fire hindered the suppression efforts along with the water supply challenges. Firefighters were not able to safely access the area above the pool to prevent the fire from traveling through the void space.”
During the fire fighting efforts, crews had to dig a trench around neighbouring Amanda’s Restaurant to divert water that was found to be accumulating in the building.
The cause of the fire is under investigation and it is not considered suspicious. The blaze was declared extinguished at 4:00 p.m.
Forty-two City of Nelson and rural firefighters responded to the incident with three fire engines, one ladder truck, five tender trucks, and two utility vehicles. BC Ambulance Service, Nelson Hydro, Nelson Public Works Department, FortisBC Gas, and the Nelson Emergency Management Program were also involved in controlling the fire.
