News 12, First at 5, July 31, 2009

AUGUSTA, Ga.---The fire started sometime before 6:00 this morning.
Fire investigators found smoking materials near the bed in a room on the second floor. They believe carelessness is a factor..

The fire destroyed about 4 rooms and damaged at least another 10. News 12 is on your side tonight with exactly went wrong and why some people say they weren't notified sooner.

The fire happened at the Days Inn Motel on Deans Bridge Road, that's near Bobby Jones.

No one was injured but it does leave many wondering how safe motels like this are.

An early morning fire ripped through a motel where many were sleeping. Investigators believe the fire started when someone left an ash tray on a bed. No one was hurt, but people staying there say things could have been much worse.

"I looked out the door myself and I saw the fire coming from the room with the debris falling down on my truck," says Nadine Johnson, who was living at the motel.

People living right under the room that caught fire say until the fire truck pulled up, they didn't hear anything.

"So you never once heard a smoke alarm go off?" Asks a reporter for News 12. "No I didn't," says Johnson.

According to Georgia law, an alarm system must be provided for any hotel having accommodations for 15 or more guests. But the exception is when each room has a direct exit to the outside of the building or if the building is less than 3 stories.

This includes sprinkler systems, which fire investigators say would have helped.

"When you install the sprinkler system you would not have a magnitude of fire like this...Sprinkler systems in the case of this room would have extinguished this fire and someone would've been notified of the fire," says Augusta-Richmond Fire Investigator Lt. Neal Brown.

According to the Richmond County annual fire inspections, over the years this motel has had several violations and been asked to replace smoke detectors in specific rooms and throughout the property.

The owner would not comment on camera but did say every room has a smoke detector. News 12 did see some rooms with smoke detectors, but also found some without them.

So this time everyone walked out, but next time someone might not be so lucky.

The owner of the Days Inn stood by that his motel was safe and that everything was up to code. He also said he would refund anyone who had paid to stay there.