December 21, 2010 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (SH2010-54) FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION R. Steve Huffman Public Information Officer (251) 208-2857/Fax: (251) 208-2861 E-Mail: huffman@cityofmobile.org INVESTIGATORS DETERMINE CAUSE OF BEST WESTERN FIRE Fire investigators with Mobile Fire-Rescue have concluded their investigation into the cause of the fire at the Best Western Battleship Inn that occurred Tuesday morning, December 21 at approximately 4:04 a.m. The fire is being ruled unintentional. The fire appears to have originated in the attic around a series of vent fans that all the motel bathroom vent fans were connected and vented through. One of the fans malfunctioned, locking up causing the fan to heat up catching nearby wood support beams to heat up to the point of catching on fire. Another contributing factor was the breaker to the malfunctioning fan failed to break cutting off the power, thus allowing the fan to continue to heat up. The fire caused an estimated $245 thousand dollars in damage to the structure and its contents. ###