By Chris Sheppard and James Swierzbin
csheppard@abc6.com & JSwierzbin@abc6.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/abc6
NEWPORT, R.I. - A fire at Pineapple Inn on Coddington Highway has left one man dead and one firefighter injured.
Newport police say the fire happened around 12 a.m. on Sunday morning.
They have not yet identified the man who died.
The American Red Cross said they are currently helping nine people, eight adults and one child, who were displaced after the fire.
One firefighter was injured while battling the flames and was treated and released at an area hospital.
The motel, which spans several buildings, had several rooms damaged by the fire.
Police and fire officials have not yet determined the circumstances surrounding the death or why the fire happened.
ABC6 News reporter James Swierzbin spoke to a witness and a woman who works at the motel about the fire.
The worker, Brittany Gonsalves, said that the man who perished in the fire had been living there for a year and a half, and was known simply as Steve.
Gonsalves also told ABC6 News that word around the motel is that a lit cigarette in Steve's room, Room 115, is what caused the blaze.
