Dec. 31--A sprinkler system malfunction was blamed for the evacuation of 27 occupied rooms in a three-story building of the Holiday Inn Bordeaux at 1707 Owen Drive late Sunday afternoon.

There was no fire, according to Commander Eric Tipton of the Fayetteville Fire Department, and that section of the hotel has been under renovation.

The department responded to a call at 5:25 p.m. About 45 minutes later, five trucks were on site.

Tipton reported water damage on the third floor of that wing of the hotel. As for an estimate on the damage, he said, "It's hard to tell on water damage on what you're going to have."

Tipton said he didn't know what caused the sprinkler system to activate. Somebody could have accidentally bumped something by mistake, he said, or it could have been a weak link in the system.

All of the guests staying in that part of the hotel were ordered to evacuate because of concerns over possible electrical hazards, Tipton said. "There's water in the light fixtures coming through the floors," he said.

The hotel supervisor on duty Sunday night declined to comment.

Bashar Alsaedy, a 21-year-old Iraqi, was among those told to leave his room while firefighters inspected the premises. He was relaxing in a lounge area of the lobby with a couple of other men bound for Afghanistan in the coming days. Alsaedy said he will be doing postal work on a contract basis.

"I'm just worried about my laptop," he said. "I love that laptop."

Sunday was his fourth day at the Bordeaux. Some of the other members of his group went to the mall after being evacuated from their rooms.

"They told me I have to wait and everything is all right," Alsaedy said, before adding with a smile. "If not, I'll sleep in a car or under a car."

Staff writer Michael Futch can be reached at futchm@fayobserver.com or 486-3529.

-----

To see more of The Fayetteville Observer, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.fayettevillenc.com/.

Copyright (c) 2007, The Fayetteville Observer, N.C.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.