Suspicious fire under investigation at Idaho Falls hotel

The following is a news release from the Idaho Falls Fire Department.

IDAHO FALLS — Police and fire officials are investigating a suspicious fire at the Le Ritz Hotel & Suites in Idaho Falls early Wednesday morning.

Idaho Falls Fire Department reports show at about 2:36 a.m., dispatchers received a call from a hotel occupant who reported smelling smoke from the first floor of the hotel at 720 Lindsay Boulevard in Idaho Falls. Firefighters and Idaho Falls Police Department were dispatched to the two-story, multi-occupant building.

A ladder truck, three engines, two ambulances and a battalion chief responded. IFPD closed off Lindsay Boulevard from Wardell Avenue to North Utah Avenue. When the ladder truck arrived on scene there was nothing showing from the outside of the hotel. However, there was heavy smoke inside the hotel.

Firefighters began searching each of the rooms on the first and second floors, and the hotel was evacuated. They quickly identified the room on the second floor that had a smoke detector going off.

Upon entry of the two-room suite, firefighters found very heavy smoke but no active fire. There were no occupants inside the hotel suite. The bed, carpet and other bedside items inside one of the rooms had fire damage, but the fire was contained to the one room. There was smoke damage throughout the hotel suite. Firefighters checked the surrounding rooms for fire damage and took measures to ventilate the smoke from the affected hotel rooms.

There were no injuries to civilians or firefighters. There were some hotel occupants who complained of smoke inhalation. However, there were no patients transported to the hospital.

The estimated damages are unknown at this time.