An early morning fire at an Oceanside hotel left two injured -- one with serious burns -- and led to evacuations, officials said.
The fire at the Dolphin Hotel Oceanside, on the 100 block of the South Coast Highway, started shortly before 5 a.m. Wednesday morning in a guest room on the top floor, guests and the hotel manager said.
Once firefighters reached the scene, they they cut a large hole in the roof to let smoke and heat escape the building and searched the second floor rooms to ensure nobody was left behind.
Fifteen adults were displaced as a result of the fire. The Oceanside Fire Department said one person was inside the room when the fire started and the manager helped him out. That person suffered burn injuries to his feet and hands and was transported to the UC San Diego Burn Center by Reach Air for treatment.
Another person named Chris worked with the hotel manager to get the man inside the burning room out. When Chris was inside on the second floor, he broke glass to access an emergency hose to help put out flames and cut up his elbow. He sprayed the flames with the hose until the flames were too strong and then jumped out of the second story window.
Officials said the cause of the fire is still unknown. The damage to the building is estimated at $100,000.
The Oceanside and Carlsbad Fire Departments are investigating.
