Four families, described as “long-term renters,” that were staying at the motel were evacuated without injury.
Fire fighters were called out around 5 a.m. after the motel owner was alerted by the pacing of his dog.
“He could actually see embers in the ceiling between the office and the kitchen,” Nielsen said.
A number of fire fighters remain on the scene to provide security while waiting for a representative from the Fire Marshall’s office to investigate the blaze.
Nielson said he has an idea of what started the fire but he was not at liberty to disclose the information until after the official investigation.
“It’s definitely accidental,” he said.
The owner had used a fire extinguisher to partly put out the blaze before fire fighters arrived. It took about another half hour, Nielsen said, to knock the fire down.
Approximately 20 fire fighters from Brookfield and a similar number from the Hilden department were involved in controlling the blaze with mutual assistance provided by a number of surrounding departments.
