Four firefighters have been killed battling a five-alarm fire at a Houston motel. At least five others have been injured.
The Houston mayor's office confirmed the dead and injured after firefighters responded to the massive blaze at the Southwest Inn shortly after noon. The fire reportedly began at a restaurant and then "flames spread to the motel and were shooting from the roof before firefighters extinguished the blaze," The Associated Press reports.
Jack Williams of member station KUHF says that "authorities think the firefighters
were trapped when the roof of the hotel collapsed about two hours after the fire started."
According to KHOU, the bodies of three of the firefighters were found in the rubble and a fourth died at a hospital.
KHOU reports:
"Six firefighters were rushed by ambulances to area hospitals. Medics were performing CPR on one of them as he was put into an ambulance.
At least one of the injured firefighters is in very critical condition, according to an HFD captain at the scene."
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