PORTLAND -- Owners of the vacant Hayden Island hotel destroyed Sunday in a five-alarm fire owed more than $1 million in back taxes.
Five of six buildings of the Thunderbird On The River complex, on the west side of the Interstate 5 bridge in Jantzen Beach were destroyed.
A representative with Multnomah County Assessor's office said the owners of Thunderbird Hotel LLC owed $1.123,801.02 in back taxes. The hotel has been vacant since 2005.
Firefighters said the damage estimate was at $5 million. Officials from the federal bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms were in charge of the investigation. Arson had not been ruled out but a cause would likely take days to discover, investigators said.
Your Pics: Jantzen Beach hotel fire
It was expected to smolder for several days.
The last time Portland firefighters battled a five-alarm fire was in 1999, a spokesperson said.
History: Thunderbird hotel
Photos: Local photographer's HDR images of hotel before blaze
KGW Reporters Mark Hanrahan and Tim Gordon contributed to this report
