No victims found in Mayan Hotel wreckage

The city Fire Department announced Thursday no victims were found in the rubble of the burned-out Mayan Hotel.

On Wednesday, about 11 a.m., a team of three personnel and two human remains detection dogs from the Orange County Fire Authority’s Urban Search & Rescue team arrived in El Centro to assist in the search for human remains at the Mayan Hotel.

The vacant hotel was heavily damaged in a thirdalarm fire Saturday night. Dangerous conditions during the fire made an interior search of the building impossible.

“[On Wednesday], an organized search of the rubble was accomplished with canines to aid in canvasing the heavily damaged structure,” El Centro Fire Department said in a release. “The canine team led the search and helped pinpoint areas of interest that firefighters painstakingly searched by hand and with power tools and other equipment. After a search of places of interest, personnel did not uncover any human remains.”

Personnel from the Imperial Fire Department; the Imperial County Fire Department; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Orange County Fire Authority; American Red Cross; AMR Ambulance; El Centro Code Enforcement Division; El Centro Public Works, and the city of El Centro Engineering Division assisted at the scene. No injuries to personnel were reported.

As a precaution, a perimeter fence has been installed to prevent unauthorized access into the damaged building.

The intersection of Sixth and State will continue to be closed for several days, the release said. Downtown traffic should find alternate routes and avoid the area to ease congestion.

The incident remains under investigation, and the cause of the fire has not been determined.

Any witnesses or individuals with information related to the fire should call (760) 337-4530.