NH oceanfront hotel fire fanned by winds near hurricane force destroys block of 5 businesses

NH hotel fire fanned by strong wind destroys block

HAMPTON, N.H. — A fire that started in an unoccupied oceanfront hotel was fanned by hurricane-force winds and spread to several nearby buildings, engulfing and destroying an entire block of businesses on a stretch of Hampton Beach popular with summer tourists. No injuries were reported.

The ferocious blaze started late Thursday or early Friday at the three-story Surf Hotel, Hampton Fire Capt. David Lang said. The block of five wood-frame buildings, including an arcade, a storage facility and a building that housed a gift shop and apartments quickly caught fire.

Hampton is a densely populated community along the Atlantic coast, about an hour north of Boston, and many of the area’s businesses, including the Surf Hotel, are only open in the summer. No one was in any of the buildings that burned. About a dozen people who lived nearby were evacuated.

The blaze began as the region bore the brunt of a slow-moving winter storm that unleashed heavy snow, rain and hurricane-force winds across the Northeast as it knocked out power to more than 1 million homes and businesses. The winds ripped off the roof of another Hampton Beach hotel, which was open for business. The handful of people inside got out safely, authorities said.

The highest wind reported during the storm was 91 mph — well above hurricane force of 74 mph — several miles offshore from Portsmouth.

The bad weather stretched the resources of the fire department, which had sent teams and equipment to several weather-related emergencies before the hotel blaze was reported at 12:05 a.m. Friday. Hampton Fire Chief Chris Silver said it was believed to have started on the first floor of the 60-year-old Surf Hotel. The cause remained under investigation, but the state Department of Safety said late Friday that criminal intent is not suspected.

Silver said the prompt response of 40 fire crews, some coming from Maine and Massachusetts, helped keep the fire from spreading.

“It certainly could have extended beyond the one block it was contained to,” Silver said.

Hampton Beach has a history of major fires, Silver said, including blazes in 1915, 1923 and 1950. The most recent major fire was in 1999.

Paul Sullivan, a retired police officer who lives in the center of town about 3 miles from the hotel, said he could see the fire from his front window.

“I saw a growing glow, getting brighter and brighter by the moment,” Sullivan said by telephone.

It took firefighters several hours before they could put out the fire while battling the winds and the cold, but by then the buildings couldn’t be salvaged, Lang said.

“They’re pretty much gone,” he said.

The strip is central to the region’s bustling summer economy and is a major draw for beach visitors. Construction is set to begin this spring on a $14.5 million renovation to the nearby seashell complex and bathrooms at the Hampton Beach State Park.

Doc Noel, president of the Hampton Area Chamber of Commerce, said there is no question the empty block will leave a void, but tourists will come to the beach anyway.

“It’s kind of sad, but life goes on. That’s a void there. It will change the look of Ocean Boulevard,” Noel said.

Associated Press writer Norma Love in Concord, N.H., contributed to this report.