Early indications suggest a blaze at a five-storey hotel in west London was not “cladding-related”, the fire service has said.
About 100 firefighters tackled the blaze at the Travelodge in High Street, Brentford, in the early hours of Wednesday.
The London Fire Brigade (LFB) said about 160 people were evacuated from the building and there were no injuries.
He told the PA news agency: “The fire crews had the hoses in that cladded area for ages.
“I’m concerned that cladding is still attached to buildings.”
“The fire was quite big, the flames were 20 metres high,” he said. “It really went up quickly.”
We’ve completed our search of the hotel. Around 160 guests & staff evacuated the building. There’s no reports of any injuries. Firefighters continue to work hard in challenging conditions to bring the blaze under control https://t.co/KK5v6zXYHt pic.twitter.com/ndm6DRGkqn
— London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) December 4, 2019
Fifteen fire engines attended the incident, which started in a bin room adjacent to the hotel.
An LFB spokesman said the blaze spread to the hotel and “up five floors”.
“The fire was on the outside, from what I gather. That is how it is looking,” the spokesman told PA on Wednesday morning.
Speaking in the afternoon, an LFB spokesman said: “The early indications are that it was not cladding-related.”
The brigade said the cause of the blaze is still under investigation by fire officers and the police.
“Guests are being looked after locally and our team are now making arrangements for their future accommodation and support,” the spokesman said.
In response to questions about cladding and how the blaze spread, the spokesman said the company did not wish to “speculate” and that it was supporting the fire brigade.
Fire crews were called to the hotel at 2.52am and were supported by staff from surrounding fire stations.
The blaze was “under control” by 6.53am and its cause is now being investigated, the brigade said.
Hotel guest Mike Thomas, who was due to check out on Wednesday morning, told PA: “We were woken up suddenly by the alarm, we didn’t believe it was really real.
“Then someone ran down the hallway and said it was an actual fire and we rushed out.”
He said the fire exit they used was close to the bin area where the blaze started.
“We could feel the heat,” he said.
“Then the penny drops that you’re actually running out of a burning building.”
