Investigators Talk to South Carolina Hotel Fire Witness

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- Fire officials said Tuesday that a man they wanted to question about a fire at a Greenville motel that killed six people appears to have only been a witness to the blaze.

A Greenville County sheriff's spokesman said the man, whom he would not identify, did provide some helpful information about Sunday's blaze. The spokesman, Sgt. Shea Smith, declined to elaborate.

The man came forward Tuesday morning after deputies released a sketch of him to the news media, Smith said. Investigators are now looking for a second man who Smith said ``may be a potential witness.''

The cause of the fire remained under investigation.

The blaze at the Comfort Inn prompted fire officials across the state to push for installation of sprinkler systems in all South Carolina hotels. The building, which was built in 1988, was not required to have sprinklers under fire codes in effect then.

In addition to the six dead, who included a 15-month-old boy, a dozen people were injured. Three of them were listed in critical condition Tuesday in an Augusta, Ga., hospital. Two others were released Tuesday.

Related:

• Investigators Seek Man In S.C. Hotel Fire
• Six Dead in Greenville, South Carolina Hotel Fire