Accidental basement fire causes Dallas' historic Adolphus Hotel to evacuate
DALLAS (CBSNewsTexas.com) — An accidental basement fire caused the Adolphus Hotel in Downtown Dallas to be evacuated Thursday afternoon.
At 2:27 p.m. July 13, Dallas Fire-Rescue responded to a structure fire call at the century-old hotel located at 1321 Commerce St.
When crews arrived, they noticed smoke coming from the basement. It was there they found fire coming from the duct work of the building's HVAC system—leading them to request a second alarm.
The blaze was put out almost an hour later, at 3:25 p.m., with the help of approximately 70 to 80 firefighters.
Investigators determined the fire was accidental in nature, caused by sparks from a contract worker's drill igniting debris inside the duct work.
The flames didn't spread anywhere else; however, smoke moved into other parts of the high rise and DFR personnel stayed behind to help ventilate it.
And while the exact number of people who were evacuated is unknown, fire officials said everyone made it out safely without any injuries.