Page 12 The Dispatch/Maryland Coast Dispatch October 25, 2013 Boardwalk Hotel Fire Originated On Ground Floor By SHAWN J. SOPER NEWS EDITOR OCEAN CITY – A local family that has owned and operated the Majestic Hotel for generations is picking up the pieces and moving on this week after a fire last Friday afternoon at the historic establishment. Around mid-day last Friday, a fire broke out at the hotel on 7th Street. The Ocean City Fire Department responded as did crews from Berlin and Ocean Pines. Witnesses told investigators they heard a large “boom” come from the building and then reported seeing smoke. Due to the type of construction and the age of the building, a third alarm was called, but members of the Ocean City Fire Department quickly controlled the fire which was extinguished a short time later. It appeared last Friday that the fire originated in the ground floors beneath Boardwalk level and the initial investigation bore that out. The Ocean City Fire Marshal’s Office determined the fire started in a basement store of the hotel, but the Firefighters are pictured on the scene of the Majestic Hotel last Friday afternoon, above right. Above left, Ocean City Fire Department Lieutenant Trevor Steedman and Berlin Fire Company Assistant Chief Logan Helmuth are pictured at a window to one of the basement stores where the blaze originated. Photos by Chris Parypa cause is still under investigation. The hotel was closed for the winter and the only person on premise was a maintenance worker. One fire cadet was treated on scene for a mi- nor injury, but no other injuries were reported. Firefighters remained on scene for several hours as ladder crews and tower truck crews removed the shutters from the upper floors and smoke emanated from the windows on the higher floors of the structure. The Boardwalk was closed to pedestrian traffic for at least a block in either direction as large fire trucks and other apparatus along with a lot of manpower battled the fire and began the cleanup process. In addition, the side streets from about 5th Street to 8th Street were closed and traffic was snarled on Baltimore Avenue for several blocks as fire equipment blocked the roadway. On an otherwise picture-perfect mid-October day with crystal clear skies and temperatures in the mid’70s, large crowds strolled the Boardwalk and the beach and many stopped to gawk and take pictures of the fire and the effort to contain it. The hotel was originally built in 1925 and named the Liberty Farms Hotel. It was renamed the Majestic Hotel in 1930. It has been owned and operated by the Savage family, a family whose name is synonymous with early Ocean City history, for generations. According to a report on the history of the hotel, the lumber used in its original construction was cut in West Ocean City and floated across SEE NEXT PAGE WELCOME AUTUMN HOME/CONDO SHOW 521 FLOWER STREET • BERLIN Right in town, 2 bedroom, 1 bath home. Over-sized property with current 5 year renter for an income producing property or a super low cost home for you. $85,000 General’s Kitchen Since 1965 The Original House Of Chipped Beef Open 6:30 a.m. 6 Days A Week CLOSED WEDNESDAY House Specialty The Original House Of Creamed Chipped Beef On Toast Or Biscuit With Hash Brown Potatoes Or Grits 410-723-0477 74th St. & Coastal Hwy. At The Beachmark Motel We Make This From Scratch! OUR OWN RECIPE! Your Hosts, Voted Best Breakfast In The Washington Post 2005 Golfers Welcome Ride The Bus To Us! “Best Of Ocean City” Bob Noll And Law Adkins