Just a few miles outside of downtown Hillsdale, Mich. on Hudson Road, you will see the black and dilapidated remains of what once was the Bavarian Inn Motel.
A fire on June 9, 2012 destroyed the three buildings that belonged to the motel, and the remains have been there ever since.
“Right now it’s pending with the fire investigation unit to settle with the insurance company. As soon as they issue a judgment, we will order it demolished,” said Martin Taylor, chief building inspector for the city of Hillsdale. “It should happen sometime in the near future.”
The Inn’s owner agreed.
“The process probably would have gone faster if only one of the buildings was destroyed, but everything was destroyed,” said owner of the Bavarian Inn Motel Satish Patel.
The fire that destroyed the motel was one of the worst fires the area has seen in years, said Jack McClain, president of the board of directors for the Hillsdale Rural Fire Department. Over 200 firefighters from five different counties came to help put the fire out.
“We had a lot of guys out there fighting the fire. One of the firefighters was actually a fire chief from out of state who just came to help out,” McLain said. “It took hours to put the fire out. They were there from 11:33 a.m. to 7:55 p.m. and then had to go back later because hot embers usually tend to start up again.”
Almost 650,000 gallons of water was used to put out the fire.
“They actually started pumping water out of Lake Baw Beese to fill their tankers because so much water was needed,” McLain said.
Many concerned citizens and local businesses helped the firefighters battle the heat from the fire that was made worse due to the hot June day.
“Someone had brought their trailer out so the firefighters could take breaks from the heat in an air conditioned space,” McLain said. “The Red Cross and Salvation Army came out, and Ritters and Little Caesars donated food to the firefighters.”
Patel was grateful to the town and the parents of college students that helped out.
“The town and college were great — helping in times of need. A lot of parents stayed [at the motel] to attend their children’s functions at the college, and I have received many letters of encouragement and letters wishing me luck in the future along with checks,” he said.
Patel hopes to rebuild the motel, but says what happens next all depends on finances.
The fire chief of Hillsdale Rural Fire Department could not be reached for comment.
