A heating unit caught fire at The Cove, 111 Center St., in Lake Geneva at about 5:25 a.m. Tuesday.
Firefighters were called to The Cove for a strong odor of natural gas early Tuesday morning. The Lake Geneva Fire Department conducting a systematic and thorough investigation and discovered elevated levels of gas, but no identified source, according to a press release from the department. The gas company was dispatched and crews continued investigating.
While firefighters continued the investigation, the automatic fire alarm began sounding, according to the release. Evacuation of the hotel was begun, while firefighters reported to the area of the fire alarm.
Firefighters discovered a fire on the roof in a heating and air conditioning unit. The fire was extinguished with dry chemical extinguishers. Damage was limited to the HVAC unit. The cause and origin of the fire are under investigation, according to the department. No injuries were reported.
“A high occupancy building like The Cove always has life safety issues when there is a fire,” said Capt. Mark Moller-Gunderson. “We are fortunate that we had crews already on scene when the fire alarm sounded. With the help of maintenance staff from The Cove, we were able to quickly gain access to the roof, locate the fire, and extinguish it before the fire spread to the rest of the building. We’re glad that no one was hurt and that The Cove could return to operation.”
