Fire burns outdoor structures at Ukiah motel

A fire that burned an outdoor seating area at a Ukiah motel Tuesday fortunately did not spread to any of the buildings, the Ukiah Valley Fire Authority reported.

UVFA Battalion Chief Justin Buckingham said crews were dispatched to the Super 8 on South Orchard Avenue around midnight July 20 for a report of a fire near the motel’s pool, and upon arrival he found “a pergola fully involved in flames.”

Buckingham said officers from the Ukiah Police Department were already on scene and had used a fire extinguisher on the flames, “but it had little effect” on the blaze that was burning the plastic furniture and other

structures.

Fortunately, Buckingham said the patio-type area was far enough away from the main buildings of the motel that no other structures were immediately threatened, but he said the materials that were burning tend to create fires that are not easy to put out.

He said Wednesday morning that he was still investigating how exactly the fire started, but that it was definitely “humancaused. I’m waiting to view surveillance footage to find out more.”

He added that Tuesday night’s fire was just one of several human-caused starts in the past week, pointing to a Dumpster fire on Washington Avenue early Monday, and a Dumpster fire near a hotel on Airport Park Boulevard on July 14. Two days after the fire near the Fairfield Inn, the UPD arrested Nathaniel Chim, 27, of Fort

Bragg, for allegedly starting that fire and charged him with arson.

“We’ve had a rash of fires lately,” Buckingham said, adding that with the temperatures getting hotter, and both the air and vegetation just getting drier, every new fire is more worrisome, no matter the cause. He urged all residents to be aware and careful with any sparks or flames, to “not toss cigarettes, don’t mow in the afternoon,” and report smoke and fires as soon as possible.