Cause of Austin hotel fire undetermined: AFD
AUSTIN, Texas - Crews were still on scene Thursday afternoon after a four-alarm fire that started on Wednesday, Feb. 28. It started at an abandoned building and spread to the Casulo Hotel on I-35 between Woodward and Oltorf.
About 130 firefighters fought the blaze, and AFD said the wind made it more difficult to put out.
"Because of the wind we had yesterday, the strong wind, the fire did spread to the adjoining building, that's what resulted in the damage, the fire, water, and smoke damage to the adjoining building," Battalion Chief Pete Constantine with Austin Fire Department said.
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Firefighters used a drone to check for hot spots because it was not safe for them to go in.
"We're also evaluating the structural stability of the remaining building, which at this time is uninhabitable. We've had structural collapse inside the building as well," Constantine said.
Officials say the cause is currently undetermined because of the complete destruction of the building of origin. They estimate $3 million in losses.
A firefighter was hurt, but it's not clear to what extent. No civilians were hurt.
Anastasia Rodriguez had been living at the hotel with her family. She says her mom was asleep when flames broke out.
"Thankfully, our room was next to the fire exit, but a friend, he lived on the rooftop, and he came running down and actually got my mom out," she said.
Rodriguez wasn't there at the time, but got a call from her mom.
"She didn't know what to say. She was like, 'we lost everything.' I was confused. I really didn't know what to think," she said.
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Rodriguez says she's adjusting to living without both everyday items and the ones with memories.
"It took me hours to process it. This morning, I was getting ready, I was like, I need a brush, and I was like oh... like, you know, it's hard," she said. "It was a lot of sentimental stuff, especially. I have this one bear that I've gone through a lot growing up. That bear has been with me since I was there, so knowing that was just like, dang."
The Red Cross is helping out, but there are still a lot of unknowns in the days to come.
"It's kind of just up in the air, we really don't know," Rodriguez said.
Constantine says the building will most likely have to be torn down.