Warren County Sanitarian Andy Hoffman said Tuesday the Budget Inn, adjacent to the Flying J truck stop at exit 188 off Interstate 70, and the Super 8 Motel on the North Outer Service Road in Warrenton were not in compliance with health and safety regulations. The regulations are mandated by the Missouri Health Department. In the case of the Budget Inn, Hoffman said three problem areas were identified: An uncertified boiler; some nonoperational emergency safety lighting; and the lack of a state permit for the motel's sewage treatment system. The Super 8's deficiencies involve a fire sprinkler system which is not up to date and the building's fire alarm system. Hoffman first inspected the Budget Inn on July 22 and then conducted a reinspection on Aug. 29. In both instances, the motel failed inspection. "The boiler issue concerns the lack of a pressure relief valve," Hoffman explained. "Boilers are like hot water heaters, where an intense amount of pressure builds up. They can explode under the right circumstances." Super 8 owner Cheton Gandhi has since disconnected the gas line feeding the boiler and is using backup generators, according to Hoffman. Hoffman also noted Gandhi has ordered new emergency lighting units and has applied for his state sewage treatment license. "Sometimes the problems are just not something with a quick-fix solution," he said. "In this case, Mr. Gandhi is doing what he needs to do to comply with the situation." The owner of the Super 8 Motel, C.J. Patel, has also been cooperative in trying to address the issues regarding his business, Hoffman said. On July 24, the motel failed Hoffman's review. The facility also failed a subsequent reinspection on Aug. 25. The motel fire sprinklers do not have up to date certification and several doors which are designed to shut automatically in the event of a fire are now propped open because the magnets which control them do not work. "Those doors should shut to seal off a floor," Hoffman said. "But Mr. Patel is working to correct the issue." Hoffman said the other five motels in Warren County all passed recent inspections. Those include the Holiday Inn Express, the Budget Inn, Comfort Inn, Days Inn and Relax Inn. The state requires inspections once a year, Hoffman explained. Inspections cover a minimum of 10 percent of each establishment's rooms, plus its sanitation facilities, electrical system, food service facilities, overall building structure and fire safety. Hoffman issues either a pass or fail grade, based on his findings. "I tend to over-inspect," Hoffman observed. "In some cases, I may look at nearly 100 percent of a motel's rooms." In his 13 years of working for the county, Hoffman said he could not recall a single instance where a local motel had been shut down. "I think that says a lot about most of our local managers and owners," he said. "They are generally very responsible." If a motel did not eventually address Hoffman's list of violations and failed a reinspection, "the state would step in at some point and provide them with a compliance schedule which they would be expected to follow." And if the motel still failed to fix the problems? "They could eventually have their lodging license taken away from them by the state," Hoffman said. "You can't operate (a motel) without it, so they would have to shut down."