ROCKINGHAM-A two-alarm fire last week that had the potential of leaving dozens of vulnerable residents homeless was contained quickly enough to prevent a much more serious disaster.
Damage from the May 11 blaze at the Rodeway Inn at 593 Rockingham Rd. was limited to the main structure of the motel and did not affect any of the rooms.
An estimated 40 to 50 residents who are in the General Assistance Emergency Housing program have been able to stay in their rooms.
Miranda Gray, deputy commissioner of the Economic Services Division of the Vermont Department for Children and Families, confirmed the fire and Rodeway Inn’s participation in the hotel voucher program.
In addition to Rockingham, fire departments in Westminster, Springfield, and Walpole, New Hampshire, responded to the late morning fire quickly enough to contain the blaze.
Power was shut off to the motel’s 24 rooms for about a day after the fire was brought under control, and residents were allowed to stay in their rooms overnight without power or heat.
According to Rockingham Municipal Fire Chief Shaun McGinnis, the utilities are back on “and, since only the main office building was affected” by the fire, “guests are being allowed to stay.”
“However,” Gray said, “if a household reached out and requested to be moved, Economic Services had a plan in place to move the households.”
None of the residents made that request.
An employee received a minor first-degree burn, the only injury reported from the fire.
McGinnis said that, while the fire is not suspicious, the Vermont State Police and the Division of Fire Safety are handling the investigation.
He said that the investigation into the cause of the fire has been difficult because of the extent of the damage and “will most likely take a little while.”
This News item by Robert F. Smith was written for The Commons.