Watsonville police assist firefighters at a structure fire at the Resetar Residential Hotel Wednesday afternoon on Main Street at West Lake Ave.
Watsonville Battalion Chief Almita Schaefer said that the fire, which started just after 3pm, was contained to one apartment on the second floor.
There were no injuries, although the entire building was evacuated and several people were displaced. The cause is still under investigation.
Resetar maintenance worker Jesus Silva, who has been at the job for 25 years, said he rushed to the second floor when the fire started, and cut both of his hands in his efforts to battle the blaze.
“I emptied five fire extinguishers into that fire right away,” he said. “The flames were all in the walls and window frame. I got one man out of the apartment.”
The six-story, 100-room Resetar Hotel was built by William Weeks in 1929. It now serves as a low-income residential apartment.
