West Columbia, SC (Paul Kirby) – Firefighters from the City of West Columbia, Lexington County, and the City of Cayce quickly brought a working fire in at least one unit of the Delta Motel under control around 4:40 a.m. Monday. The fire was dispatched at about 4:20 a.m. and when the first truck from the WCFD arrived, they reported heavy flames and smoke coming from one building. Cayce officers that were responding reported they could see a large column of smoke backlit by the lights of the city streaming skyward long before they arrived at the fire.
West Columbia Police Officers began arriving along with the fire equipment and a water supply hose was hooked to a fire hydrant and stretched down Augusta Road. The police closed that portion of Hwy. 1 and quickly began detouring traffic around the hose so no one would interrupt the flow of water to the firefighters. In a short period, West Columbia’s ranking fire officer reported that the fire was under control. There has been no word yet on if there were any injuries as a result of the blaze. The Delta Motel usually has a good occupancy rate.
The Delta is an iconic fixture of the area that has been near I-26 for as long as most old-timers can remember. It is often home to long-term renters, blue collar families who’ve suddenly found themselves without housing, and others who have a hard luck story to tell. It has rates that would qualify as economy pricing. In recent years, the exterior and yard has been kept neat and the management has tried to work with the city in order to improve its standing in the community.
Firefighters will probably be one the scene even after daybreak cleaning and picking up their equipment. At some point, West Columbia’s fire marshal will be working with others to determine the cause of the fire. Lexington County’s fire equipment and personnel began leaving the scene about 5:20 a.m. We will update this story as more information becomes available.
