Tulsa's Hyatt Hotel Closed After Escalator Fire

The Hyatt in downtown Tulsa is closed after a fire near an escalator forced hundreds of people to evacuate on Friday.

11/16/2018 Related Story: Guests Evacuated After Fire At Tulsa Hyatt Hotel

It's a tough situation for people who are here for all kinds of events happening in the city this weekend.

"We had a fire at the top of the stairs near the escalator the sprinklers went off," said TFD Public Information Officer Victor Grimes.

About 400 people inside were evacuated. Firefighters knocked down the fire quickly, but the cleanup will be messy. Firefighters say the sprinklers went off near the fire, but they still had to use fire extinguishers and water hoses to put it out.

"In forty years, this is the first time I've had a fire. Fridays usually they'll do a fire alarm in most hotels, check everything out but it's the first time I've ever had anything like this," said hotel guest Steve Houston.

Although no one was seriously hurt, the hotel closed for tonight, leaving guests without a place to stay. With events like the Route 66 Marathon and the Arabian horse show, people began scrambling to find hotel rooms. Kathy Parenteau says she was on the 11th floor when the fire alarm started to go off. 

"Well not really knowing what it was it was just okay. You know the training, take the stairs, and that's what we did, and we came out and we could smell it," said Kathy.

Firefighters escorted people in to get their belongings as investigators try and figure out how the fire started and the amount of damage the fire caused.

Restoration crews are on site. No word yet on when the hotel is expected to reopen.