Man dies in motel blaze

A fire swept through the Shakespeare Inn early Thursday morning, killing a man who apparently was trapped in his bathroom.

Several people who knew the man, whose name was not released, said he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Eyewitnesses said at least two of the man’s neighbors tried to save him, but said that by then, the room was already engulfed in flames.

Fire officials said the fire started at about 1:20 a.m. in a ground-level motel room in Birch Square, near the corner of North Acoma Boulevard and Mesquite Avenue. Authorities said no one else was injured in the fire.

Several bystanders said they heard the man screaming for help. Authorities, however, were not sure how he ended up in the bathroom.

It was unknown whether the man died of smoke inhalation or burned to death. An autopsy is scheduled today.

Officials believe the fire started because of a “careless discard of smoking materials.” Fire Marshal Chip Shilosky said there was no battery in the room’s smoke detector.

That room was destroyed in the fire, its walls and ceiling reduced to charred rubble. Five other rooms were damaged, though not as badly. A string of yellow tape cordoned off a row of motel rooms, stretching from the ground level up to the balcony. Shilosky said the damage was estimated at $218,000.

Later that morning, several of the motel’s guests were huddled across from where the fire broke out, watching as an insurance adjuster went from room to room, surveying the damage.

Kim Young was staying a few rooms down from where the fire started. He said he knew the man who died.

“Had I gotten up in time, maybe I could have done something to save him,” Young said. “Real nice guy, really mellow, kept to himself. Everybody like him.”

Young said the man’s dog, Rosco, was popular with the other guests. Rosco wasn’t injured in the fire. Officials said the dog is staying with one of the man’s friends.

Angela Ashton works at the motel’s front desk. She described the man as a “long-term resident” who recently was diagnosed with terminal cancer. “It’s really sad,” Ashton said. “Everybody here really liked him.”

She said those displaced by the fire were moved to other rooms in the motel. Ashton said the inn has about 30 rooms, though she couldn’t say exactly how many people were moved because of the fire.

Two American Red Cross Disaster Action Team volunteers were on the scene. Red Cross is providing a safe place to sleep for five people impacted by the fire for the next few nights as well as the means to obtain food, clothing and other essentials.

You may contact the reporter at raap@havasunews.com.