MontBleu fire forces hotel-casino to evacuate
Two people were taken to the hospital Wednesday for smoke inhalation and 200 others evacuated from MontBleu casino in Stateline when a fire erupted in the main kitchen.
The cause of the May 6 blaze is under investigation.
“One of their commercial ovens had a fire and it had about 4-foot-by-8-foot flames coming out of the oven,” Eric Guevin, Tahoe Douglas fire marshal, told Lake Tahoe News.
Employees using fire extinguishers were unable to suppress the flames. The fire was contained to the kitchen by Tahoe Douglas, North Tahoe, East Fork and South Lake Tahoe firefighters.
That particular oven is condemned, according to Guevin. The health department will be on scene today.
All of the kitchens at the casino are tied together, with there being one main one and then offshoots for the individual restaurants.
The 200 people who were evacuated about 3:30 Wednesday were allowed back inside the casino and to their rooms within 30 minutes. The elevators were off-limits for about an hour. Casino employees used fans to clear the stairwells and hallways of smoke. Smoke reached the 11th floor.
No one from MontBleu was available for comment.
— Lake Tahoe News staff report
Glad to hear the fire at MontBleu was put out quickly.
Good colaberation between all of the fire departments involved.
We have an excellet group of fire fighters and our law enforcement crew is good as well.Because of the way our community was built, you can have a fire truck or law enforcement where the problem is? They can be there in minutes.
Thank you fire fighters for saving my house and thank you SLTPD for keeping things under controll. OLS
OLS would of been the Douglas County Sheriff’s, you need to thank the right group, thanks to all.
thank God the City of South Lake Tahoe Fire Dept. was able to respond with the new million dollar ladder truck. Even if it wasn’t needed this time, it must have been such a relief to everyone just to see it and to know it was there!
this just in!! apparently the million dollar money pit now lives full time at the city garage on Shop street and never made an appearance at MontBleu during the event. gives me a warm feeling!