Three-Alarm Blaze Burns Nearly Complete Hotel in Delaware

A Delaware state fire official says it took firefighters from across the state four hours to control a three-alarm blaze at a Milford hotel under construction.

Chief Deputy State Fire Marshal B. Scott Bullock says about 75 percent of the Hampton Inn off state Route 1 burned.

Someone driving by noticed smoke around 5:30 a.m. Monday and called 911. By the time firefighters entered the three-story building, flames had reached the building’s upper floors.

Firefighters from 24 departments were called in and the fire was under control around 9:40 a.m. Bullock says the hotel scheduled to open next month was a total loss and part of the roof collapsed.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Fire hydrants weren’t working yet so firefighters refilled tankers at a pond.