Two hospitalized after hotel fire in Houston's Third Ward

Flames on the first floor of the Deluxe Inn in Houston’s Third Ward sent two people to the hospital and damaged 20 units at the Truxillo Street hotel Monday morning. One victim was in critical condition with major burns and smoke inhalation. Houston Fire Department crews were called shortly after midnight and reached the scene within three or four minutes.

The fire broke out in a room on the hotel’s first floor at the corner of Truxillo Street and Delano Street, a stretch that sits in one of Houston’s most recognizable dense urban neighborhoods. Investigators had not determined what sparked the blaze, and officials had not said whether guests were inside when it began. What was clear was the scale of the damage: 20 units were affected, turning a single-room fire into a much larger disruption for the property.

Third Ward’s mix of housing, businesses and institutions can make a hotel fire especially disruptive because the effects do not stop at one address. A hotel on Truxillo and Delano sits near streets used by residents, workers and visitors, and a fast-moving fire can quickly complicate access for emergency vehicles and nearby traffic. In this case, the quick response from firefighters likely kept the incident from becoming worse, but two people still needed hospital care.

The hospitalized victims turned the fire into more than a property loss. With one person in critical condition and investigators still working to determine the cause, the focus remained on the immediate safety of the building and the people who had been inside it. The fire remained under investigation as crews assessed the extent of damage to the Deluxe Inn.