Norfolk, Va. – A laundry room fire forced several guests to move to new rooms at the Residence Inn Hotel at 227 West Brambleton Ave. Tuesday night.
Norfolk Fire-Rescue units arrived at the hotel at 11:37 p.m. and found no visible fire or smoke from the exterior.
The fire alarm was sounding and occupants were evacuating the hotel.
Firefighters discovered smoke inside the laundry room from a charred linen cart. The sprinkler head inside the laundry room activated and contained the fire.
The call was upgraded from a fire alarm to a commercial fire and additional units responded to the scene. Firefighters checked for fire extension and discovered the fire was contained to the linen cart.
The linen cart ignited because it was stored too close to a wall air-conditioning unit inside the laundry room, fire officials say.
Water discharging from the sprinkler head did affect the second and third floors and hotel guests on these floors were relocated to other rooms inside the hotel.
Hotel guests were allowed back to their rooms on the remaining floors.
There were no injuries reported and the fire has been ruled accidental.
