The Royal Inn in Eureka shuts down following a list of health and safety code violations

Link

Embed

Copy and paste this HTML code into your webpage to embed.

EUREKA, Calif. (KIEM)- A motel in Eureka is shut down and the tenants evicted, following a list of health and safety code violations.

On Tuesday, September 14, the Eureka Police Department’s Problem Oriented Policing team served a search warrant at the Royal Inn in Eureka in response to reports of drugs and weapons.

When police arrived at the inn, they noticed that there was only one staircase that could be used and that’s when the city’s code enforcement got involved.

“This started with a criminal search warrant but quickly escalated or elevated into really what was a much more serious situation that the city’s code enforcement unit and the building official were involved in,” said Eureka Police Chief Steve Watson.

The inspection was done on Wednesday morning and they found several violations including hazardous electrical work, leaking plumbing, rotten stairs, rooms contaminated with blood, urine and feces, severe mold, rats, cockroaches and bed bugs, fire hazards and other violations.

“Both collectively and individually, the health and safety code violations were not something that we could allow people to stay there, and the decision was made, with the chief building official and public works director that we were going to board up the motel,” said Deputy Director of Public Works for the City of Eureka Brian Issa.

So once the decision was made to shut down the inn, the city and other organizations helped relocate some of the tenants.

“We were able to rehouse some of the more at-risk tenants immediately we helped them move their belongings and stuff to another location and provided them assistance to get them housed immediately,” said Issa

As for the suspect the police were looking for Tuesday morning, EPD said that he was not at the motel, but they did find drugs, ammunition and two gun silencers in the room they searched.