Beach Motel Catches Fire On Pacific Coast Highway

A Newport Beach motel caught fire Tuesday morning, on PCH, blazing for 1.5 hrs, sending smoke billowing throughout the area, witnesses said.

By Ashley Ludwig, Patch Staff | Apr 10, 2018 2:59 pm ET | Updated Apr 10, 2018 7:34 pm ET

NEWPORT BEACH, CA — A single story motel on Pacific Coast Highway caught fire in the early hours of Tuesday morning, officials said. Over 40 firefighters assisted with taking down the blaze from across the county, including Orange County Fire Authority, Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach and Fountain Valley fire departments. All worked together to bring the Pine Knot Motel blaze to a close, though the fire continued to burn for over an hour, reports said.

Newport Beach firefighters arrived at the scene of the Pine Knot Motel, located at the 6300 block of West PCH, at about 5:35 a.m. Tuesday morning.

"At the time of the fire, all of the occupants were able to safely evacuate," a Newport Beach Fire Department spokesperson said. Firefighters did assist one person and three dogs were also rescued.

When firefighters arrived, two motel rooms were engulfed in flames, and heavy smoke pumped from the structure. Firefighters were forced to evacuate due to the threat of building collapse, the NBFD said. Five rooms of the Pine Knott Motel were completely gutted, and smoke heavily damaged all 12 rooms of the motel.

Firefighters extinguished the flames in an hour and 15 minutes, a fire dispatcher said. No injuries were reported.

The fire was completely out by just after 8 a.m. and no injuries were reported. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

Newport Beach Fire Department file photo.