Troubled Vandalia Super 8 motel has partial roof collapse in Sunday morning fire

The Super 8 Motel in Vandalia, which recently reopened after being shut down for a year, erupted into a three-alarm fire early Sunday morning.

Vandalia fire crews were dispatched around 4:15 a.m. to the 550 E. National Road motel — which sits behind McDonald’s at the Interstate 75 and U.S. 40 interchange — to an automatic fire alarm, according to a statement from the Vandalia Division of Fire.

First responders arrived to find smoke and fire coming from the west side of the building. Vandalia police and fire crews evacuated the building.

Fire was in the roof assembly over the pool/drive-thru areas and two mechanical rooms and extended into two rooms on the west end, Fire Chief Chad E. Follick said. Also, several rooms around and under the fire rooms were damaged by smoke and water.

A small section of the building’s roof over the pool and drive-thru area collapsed, according to the fire department.

A child was taken to Dayton’s Children Hospital for a minor ankle injury and a second person was evaluated at the scene for a minor injury but not transported, Follick said.

No firefighters were injured.

Fire officials did not immediately list a cause for the blaze, but investigators from the State Fire Marshal’s Office were called to the scene. National Road was closed in both directions early Sunday as crews fought the fire.

Follick said a damage estimate for the property damage isn’t yet available as it will take some time to develop.

Credit: Marshall Gorby

Crews from Butler Twp., Huber Heights, Dayton, Harrison, Bethel, Tipp City, Troy and the Fire Collaborative from Clayton, Englewood and Union assisted as well.

The motel was ordered closed by the city in August 2022 due to structural issues and fire code violations. Earlier this month, the city reached an agreement with motel operators that would allow them to reopen.

Some of the requirements of the agreement included: maintaining the fire alarm system and daily inspections/examinations of smoke detectors; prohibiting anyone who has been trespassed, and/or is on the trespass list maintained by Vandalia and Butler Twp. police from renting rooms; inspecting and confirming occupancy limits and compliance with extended stay laws and many other stipulations.

“As a result of fire code enforcement efforts at the property over the last year, a full fire alarm system had to be installed,” Follick said. “The early notification to the occupants and the fire department was key to preventing injuries/deaths here, and the early notification on the fire allowed us to keep property damage to a minimum.”

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