Heavy smoke from a hotel fire in Denver early this morning resulted in 11 people being taken to local hospitals, including five children.
All the injuries were from smoke inhalation and none appeared to be life threatening, said Denver Fire Department Asst. Chief Greg Champlain.
The fire started at about 1:00 a.m. at the Howard Johnson Inn-Denver, 4765 Federal Blvd., Champlain said.
When firefighters arrived they found heavy, black smoke coming out of the second story of the two-story building, Champlain said.
Most of the people staying there had already evacuated the building after smoke and fire alarms went off, Champlain said.
About 30 firefighters put out the fire, which started in a stairwell. Firefighters contained the fire to the stairwell.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Details on the smoke inhalation victims were not available.
Hotel staff was able to find rooms at the Howard Johnson or other area hotels to accommodate everyone who was temporarily displaced, Champlain said.
The building that caught fire has 32 units.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.
