OREM, Utah — A man staying at a hotel in Orem on Friday is accused of breaking his room's fire alarm, activating the sprinkler and flooding the place.
Police say 48-year-old Shane Dee Laursen was seen wandering around the La Quinta Inn and was told by a witness (unclear whether the witness was an employee) to return to his room. Then around 2 a.m., the witness heard the fire alarm going off and heard water running inside Laursen's room.
The witness opened the door and saw the room flooded by the fire suppression sprinklers. Police say the damage forced 40 guests to relocate.
Fire department personnel saw that the smoke detector was gone. Laursen was also not in the room. Police contacted him by phone and told him to return to the hotel, at which point he "asked if his room was repaired."
Laursen drove back to the hotel, where he told police he disassembled the sprinkler and hit it with a hammer. He said he did this because he "just wanted to go to sleep."
Police said Laursen showed signs of impairment. Blood tests later taken at the jail came back positive for methamphetamine, amphetamine and THC.
Laursen was charged with property damage, controlled substance possession, driving under the influence, and "causing a catastrophe."
