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07:47 - Wednesday, Nov. 01, 2006
The Mizpah Hotel
OMG!!! i used to live here......

One dead, 31 injured in residential hotel fire

One person was killed and 31 injured in a four-alarm fire late Tuesday in the historic Mizpah Hotel in downtown Reno, where some people were jumping out of the three-story building to safety.

The name of the person who died was not immediately available, city spokesman Steve Frady said. It was not known how many people were hospitalized and the extent of injuries for those hospitalized.

A triage center was being set up north of the residential hotel built in the early 1920s. Residents there suffered from serious injuries, smoke inhalation and burns, Reno police Lt. Bruce Kirby said.

Those hospitalized were taken to Renown Regional Medical Center, Saint Mary's Regional Medical Center and a burn center at the University of California at Davis, Kirby said.

People in the hotel were jumping out of windows to escape the flames that were shooting through the roof about 10 to 15 feet, Kirby said.

The Mizpah residential hotel has about 60 to 80 residents. The fire started about 10 p.m. where on the northwest side of the building at 214 Lake St. and quickly spread. A cause was not immediately determined.



"I couldn't breathe," said Ralph Raley, a first-floor resident.

Smoke alarms alerted him to the fire, and he was able to escape through a front door. "This is (all) I got," Raley said pointing to his jacket and pants.

At least 35 firefighters were at the scene near Second and Lake streets.

They were dousing the flames with aerial firefighting equipment and hoses on ground level.

John Hicks, another resident, was rescued by firefighters from his bathroom window. "I feel lucky to be alive even though I lost everything," Hicks said.

A person was reported on the roof awaiting a rescue when crews arrived.

Initial reports from the scene indicated that some people had received cuts, and additional fire crews were being sent to get people out of the building.

The fire continued to burn well past 11 p.m., and the Red Cross was helping assist residents displaced by the fire.

Streets in the area were being blocked with Second Street closed from Evans Avenue to Virginia Street and Lake Street from First to Fourth streets.

This was a good place to live. It was clean, and quiet, similar to the Rio Grande. I used to sit in the lobby and talk with the old timers over coffee and cigarettes. **SOB** I am deeply saddened by this. I lived here many times during my travels, and when i ended up in reno for the summer or winter rest, this was where i lived. there is a parking lot across the street that used to have a small market there, then, on the other side of that, further down, was Harolds Club, where i got my 1st job in reno, washing dishes in the nicklelodeon resturant.

I miss this place. now, its gone. im gonna have a good cry now.

The Mizpah Hotel is associated with Reno's historic Italian business district. It was built in three stages by the Pincolini brothers and remains in the same family ownership today. The first section opened in 1922, and was expanded in 1925 and again in 1930. The Mizpah Hotel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 and on the Reno City Register of Historic Places in 1999 (historical information courtesy of Fabio Reginato, Owner, Mizpah Hotel).


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