1966 — Sep 12, Arson Fire, Lane Hotel, Anchorage, AK                                             —     14

—  14  Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK). “Toll Mounts…Anchorage Hotel…” Sep 12, 1966, 1.

—  14  NFPA. “Bimonthly Fire Record,” Fire Journal, Vol. 61, No. 1, Jan 1967, p. 43.

—  14  NFPA. “Hotel Fire: Anchorage, Alaska.” Fire Journal, V61, N3, May 1967, p. 45.

—  14  NFPA. Summary of Fire Incidents 1934-2006 in Hotel Fires in the United States.  2008.

—  14  Ward, Neale. “Hotel Fires: Landmarks in Flames…,” Firehouse, March 1978, p. 41.

 Narrative Information

 NFPA: “The two-story-and-part-basement wood-frame Lane Hotel in Anchorage, Alaska, was built in 1918, during the frontier days of he town, and was remodeled and added to in later years. The building’s plywood-and-combustible-fiberboard interior finish and open stairways were permitted by a ‘grandfather clause’ in the building code, enacted in recent years, that exempted existing buildings from compliance with the requirements for new buildings to have fire-retardant interior finish, enclosed stairways, and an automatic sprinkler or fire detection system. The hotel’s guests were entirely unprotected. There was no automatic sprinkler system, fire detection system, or warning alarm system in the building.

 

“At 1:00 am on Monday, September 12, 1966, the night clerk and two guests were sitting in the lobby intently watching television. The clerk in the liquor store adjoining the hotel lobby was serving a customer. About 30 other persons were in the hotel at the time, most of them in their rooms asleep.

 

“Sitting quietly in the hotel café, which opened onto the lobby, was a compulsive arsonist, who was experiencing an urge to set a fire. The circumstances that form tragedy had come together. The stage was set. Fourteen of the guests would soon die.

 

Fire

 

“According to the arsonist’s own statement, he went to the men’s room in the first story…got some paper towels, placed them on a pile of soiled linens in the corridor, and ignited the paper. He then left by a nearby emergency exit, causing a buzzer connected to the door to sound in the lobby. On hearing the buzzer, the night clerk remarked to the clerk in the liquor store that someone must be sneaking out the back way to avoid paying his café check. While the arsonist did not admit to it, evidence indicates that when he got outside he stuffed burning paper or rubbish through the slightly open window of Room 110, beside the exit from which he had left the building.

 

“The burning paper quickly ignited combustibles in Room 110 and soon filled the room with heat and smoke. The 30-year-old president of the Tyoneck Indian Village Council, who was in town on business, was asleep in the room. Apparently he died of smoke inhalation without ever waking. In the corridor outside his room the soiled linens began to burn. The flames ignited the adjacent combustible wall paneling and spread to the combustible fiberboard ceiling. At that time most of the smoke and heat was rising up the open stairway, but some smoke was traveling along the first-story corridor to the lobby at ceiling level.

 

“Almost simultaneously, the customer and the clerk in the liquor store and the hotel clerk became aware of the smoke drifting along the lobby ceiling. The hotel clerk looked down the corridor and saw the reflection of flames at the far end. He grabbed a portable pump-type water extinguisher and he and the two guests in the lobby ran toward the fire. As they approached the fire, flames suddenly erupted from Room 110, and smoke and heat drove them back. The hotel clerk ran to the telephone at the front desk, called the public telephone operator, and notified her of the fire. The occupants of Rooms 111 and 114 escaped; the guest in Room 112 died. Room 118 was vacant.

 

Upstairs

 

“After he had reported the fire, the night clerk ran up the front stairway and started knocking on the doors of the second-story rooms. He went down the west corridor and reached Room 212 before smoke and heat forced him to retreat down the front stairway and out of the building. Firemen soon arrived and started laddering the building. The woman in Room 212 went out the window and down a ladder. Her companion groped his way through the smoke to go down the front stairway. The man occupying Room 203 went out the window of his room to a canopy over the barber shop entrance and waited for a ladder. An occupant of a nearby room ran into Room 203 and also reached safety on the canopy. Both were taken down a fire department ladder, as were other guests on the west side and the front of the building.

 

“The occupant of Room 217 awoke to find her room full of smoke. She tried to open the window but could get it only partially open. As she started to lose consciousness, a fireman broke out the window and carried her down a ladder. The sone of another woman who had a room on the east side of the building saw the fire from the street and ran into the hotel to rescue his mother. He got her into the corridor, but before they could reach the front stairway she decided to return to her room for some of her possessions. The smoke was already making the corridor untenable, and the son lost contact with her and was forced to jump out a second-story window. He was hospitalized with second- and third-degree burns. The mother’s body was found in thee corridor outside Room 221. The other occupants of rooms on the east side escaped without assistance.

 

“One man from dormitory Room 303B awoke to see smoke coming through the open doorway of the dormitory. He went out a window into the light well and up a ladder to the roof (a workman had left the ladder there the previous day). He ran to the front of the building and waved his shirt above the six-foot-high parapet until firemen saw it and raised an aerial ladder. Two firemen went up the ladder but they could not lift the 300-pound man over the parapet. One of the firemen went back to the street and carried up a short ground ladder for the guest to use to get from the roof to the top of the parapet and the aerial ladder. Because of the man’s fear of height, the firemen had difficulty helping him down the ladder.

 

“There was no way to tell exactly how many rooms were occupied at the time of the fire. Although an estimated 30 to 35 persons were in the guest rooms, only 25 were registered, and some of those registered were not in the building when the fire started….

 

“The fatalities in the second story were scattered, and most of them were near exits or windows that would have provided escape routed during the first few minutes of the fire. Although the enclosed stairway at the southeast corner of the building led directly to the outside, apparently no one used it to escape. Those who escaped unaided from the second story used the front stairway. Many of the guests probably were sound sleepers, and it is possible that some had been drinking heavily….

Arson

 

“….On October 3, fires occurred in three cocktail lounges in the area. All were set in paper in the men’s room or in rubbish at the rear of the building. Six more fires of similar origin occurred on the evening of October 9 and the early morning of October 10. All the fires were promptly discovered and quickly extinguished… A soldier sitting in an automobile on a parking lot saw the arsonist set the sixth fire and leave in an automobile. The soldier immediately reported the fire and gave the license number of the arsonist’s automobile to the police. Coincidentally, the arsonist was picked up a few minutes later for drunken driving.

 

“Upon questioning, the suspect readily admitted having set many fires, including two major fires in 1965 that had resulted in total loss of the buildings ignited. He had worked as a cook in restaurant in the two buildings. After much questioning, he finally admitted setting the hotel fire, and the police charged him with 14 counts of murder and 10 counts of arson.

 

“….As a result of this hotel fire, the local codes were modified to eliminate the grandfather clause with regard to existing buildings such as hotels. This tightening of the code required removal of combustible interior finish and installation of sprinkler or fire detection systems.” (National Fire Protection Assoc.. “Hotel Fire: Anchorage, Alaska.” Fire Journal, V61/N3, May 1967, pp. 45-48.)

 

Newspapers

 

Sep 12: “….The death toll is believed to be the largest from a single fire in Alaska’s history. It even exceeded by one the number killed in the great earthquake Of 1964….

 

“The fire broke out about 1:30 a.m., as a cold, steady rain fell in Anchorage. John Uhles, night clerk, who said the blaze started with an explosion in the rear of the hotel, said he raced “from door to door,” knocking to wake up residents until the smoke became so thick he had to flee for safety.

 

“Those who awoke in time to get out, told of the terror they felt.  “Something woke me up, and my room was filled with smoke that seemed to be coming from a vent in the floor. I called out the window to some boys on the corner— they took off running like hell, and a few minutes later

The firemen were coming with ladders,” said Patrick Fitzgerald of Kodiak, who was just passing through town. He, like some others who escaped, waited— not saying much…while firemen and police fought the inferno while trying to guess if anyone was still inside….And when the fire was controlled, then extinguished, the truth was known.  Firemen began to search the charred timbers for bodies. The roof had fallen in, making the task more difficult.  They began to locate the victims, one at a time–and carry their remains outside, with bloody hands and grim faces.  “It’s at least six,” then, “Ten now”, and now, “fourteen,” they said.

 

“Bodies were taken to the police garage, where the difficult task of identification began. Two of the victims were recognized to be women. Some bodies were burned beyond recognition.  Tentative identifications were made of a few victims, but information would not be released until notification of next of kin.  “We won’t know what the final number will be until we sift through the debris,” Fire Chief Vic Bernasconi said.  The first 10 bodies discovered were found on the second floor.  But Bernasconi said people were known to have slept in the basement, and that area, filed with charred wood and debris, will have to be searched thoroughly before a definite death toll can be determined.

 

“Uhles said he thought about 25 persons were registered, but there was no way to know how many escaped the burning building.  Virgil McVicker, owner of the building, said he believed the fire might have been caused by an explosion in the boiler room.

 

“The 22-room wooden hotel stood on the edge of Anchorage’s main business district. There was a restaurant off the downstairs lobby and an arcade toward the rear.  McVicker estimated his loss

at $250,000.” (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. “Toll Mounts…Anchorage Hotel…” 9-12-1966, 1.)

 

Sep 17: “Police said the origin of the fire in the two-story downtown Anchorage structure has been traced to a hallway – bathroom area. Police say there is no reason to believe there was foul play involved. Investigation into the cause is continuing.” (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, AK. “Last Four Fire Dead Identified,” Sep 17, 1966, p. 7.)

 

Oct 13: “Anchorage (Special)—A 35 year-old former Air Force cook was indicted yesterday on 14 murder counts in connection with the Lane Hotel fire Sept. 12.  A special grand jury made no specification whether the indictments against Charles Thessen were for first or second-degree murder. It also indicted Thessen on 10 counts of second-degree arson.  Thessen, of Anchorage, was arrested for and booked on a drunken driving charge Monday. He was charged with arson earlier Wednesday in connection with a fire in a downtown bar early Monday. That fire was one of six to which the Anchorage Fire Department was summoned late Sunday and early Monday.  The Lane Hotel fire, which claimed 14 lives, was the most disastrous fire in Anchorage history.  Anchorage police credit a Ft Richardson soldier, Robert Daugherty, with the information that led to Thessen’s being picked up.  A native of New Jersey, Thessen served as a cook in the Air Force for many years. He was discharged several months ago while stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base. He is believed to be unemployed.  Wearing faded blue coveralls, Thessen stood before Superior Court Presiding Judge Ralph E, Moody to hear the long list of charges against him.  He is accused of setting fire to the Lane Hotel and causing the deaths of….[14 people].  Bail for Thessen was set at $100,000 on the first degree murder charges and $25,000 on the arson charges. Among fires believed to have been set by Thessen are:

 

Elmendorf Air Force Base Officers’ Club fire, Jan. 15, 1965, causing $200,000 damage.

Broaster’s Restaurant Fire, Spenard, July 16, 1965, $55,000.

Outpost Bar and Restaurant, Anchorage, July 25, $55,000.

Lane Hotel Fire, Anchorage, Sept 122, $140,000. 14 dead.”

 

(Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK). “Thessen Indicted on Arson, Murder…” Oct 13, 1966, 1.)

 

May 25, 1967: “An Anchorage detective today said that Charles Thessen admitted setting fire to the Lane Hotel last September. Thessen was arrested on a drunk driving charge on Oct. 10, about one month after 14 people were killed in the hotel fire.  He then admitted to setting at least 10 fires in the Anchorage area and wrote & confession saying he started the Lane Hotel fire, Lt Earl Hippsman of the Anchorage Police Department said this morning.  “He said he set the fire but didn’t mean to kill all those people,” Hippsman told a Superior Court jury here.  Thessen, a 35-year-old short order cook, is charged with first degree murder. His trial is being held here because an Anchorage court ruled there had been too much publicity about the case in that city.

 

“Yesterday afternoon several police officers said that Thessen had confessed to setting fires in the Anchorage area.  Two agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and an Air Force investigator said that Thessen had been warned of his civil rights before he made his confession.  A clinical psychologist, James Jeffers, said he had examined Thessen before he made his confession and found him to be mentally competent. The trial was recessed from 10:30 am to 1:30 pm today to permit a psychiatrist to further examine Thessen.” (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK). “Thessen Admitted Arson: Detective,” May 25, 1967, 1.)

 

June 3, 1967: “Murder charges against Charles Thessen, 35, were thrown out by a jury as it convicted him of manslaughter in the 14 Lane Hotel fire deaths. The jury returned at 5:45 p.m. with its verdict, after four hours of deliberation….The eight-woman, four-man jury’s decision closed a 13-day trial here. “We…find Charles Thessen innocent of murder in the first degree…but guilty of the lesser crime of manslaughter.” the jury foreman said as he read the 14 separate verdicts. Thessen was impassive as the verdict was read.

 

“In final arguments yesterday morning the prosecution had asked the jury to find Thessen guilty of first degree murder….Thessen faces a possible sentence of 195 years in jail. Each of the manslaughter charges carries a maximum penalty of 15 years. Thessen is scheduled to appear in Anchorage on June 16 for sentencing. In the meantime, the Youth and Adult Authority will prepare a presentencing report. “I intend to appear for the state on June 16 and ask that he be given a sentence in excess of life.”  Thomas Curran, Anchorage district attorney who prosecuted

the case, said after court was adjourned yesterday.  “I think the jury reached the correct verdict,” Curran said.

 

“Judge Gilbert instructed the jury the evidence and testimony had to show there had been a specific intent to kill.”….Thessen still faces trial on 10 charges of arson in 10 other Anchorage fires.” (Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, AK. “Thessen Guilty in Lane Fire,”  June 3, 1967, p. 1.)

 

Sources

 

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, AK. “Last Four Fire Dead Identified.” 9-17-1966, p. 7. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=66962465

 

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, AK. “Thessen Admitted Arson: Detective.” 5-25-1967, p. 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=66965355

 

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, AK. “Thessen Guilty in Lane Fire.” 6-3-1967, p. 1. Accessed at: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=66965487

 

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, AK. “Thessen Indicted on Arson, Murder Counts in Hotel Fire,” 13 Oct 1966, 1. At: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=66962805

 

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, AK. “Toll Mounts in Early Morning Anchorage Hotel Fire Tragedy,” 9-12-1966, p. 1. At: http://www.newspaperarchive.com/FullPagePdfViewer.aspx?img=66962377

 

National Fire Protection Association. “Bimonthly Fire Record,” Fire Journal, Vol. 61, No. 1, Jan 1967.

 

National Fire Protection Association. “Hotel Fire: Anchorage, Alaska.” Fire Journal, Vol. 61, No. 3, May 1967, pp. 45-48.

 

National Fire Protection Association. Summary of Fire Incidents 1934-2006 in Hotel Fires in the United States as Reported to the NFPA, with Ten or more Fatalities. Quincy, MA: NFPA, One-Stop Data Shop, Fire Analysis and Research Division, January 2008, 4 pages. Accessed at:  http://www.nfpa.org/assets/files/Press%20Room/Hotelfirefatalitiesreport.pdf

 

Ward, Neale. “Hotel Fires: Landmarks in Flames, History’s Famous Hotel Fires,” Firehouse, March 1978, pp. 40-45.