Four firefighters die, five injured battling large Houston fire

Firefighters gather at the scene of a fire where four firefighters were killed battling a five-alarm blaze at a restaurant and hotel in southwest Houston May 31, 2013. REUTERS/Richard Carson

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Four firefighters were killed and five more were injured on Friday battling a five-alarm blaze at a restaurant and hotel in southwest Houston, fire and city officials said.

Thick black and then gray smoke billowed out of the Southwest Inn and a restaurant at the front of the low-slung building at the height of the fire on Friday afternoon. The fire was under control by mid-afternoon.