BATON ROUGE — An abandoned former hotel along Mead Road caught fire early Wednesday morning, hours before Mayor-President Sid Edwards was set to speak at the building about his ongoing campaign against blighted properties in the parish.

Baton Rouge Fire crews responded to the old OYO Hotel, which was in the process of being demolished, with 43 firefighters around 6:30 a.m.

When crews arrived, they found smoke and flames coming from an open area on the building's second floor. The front of the building was already removed as part of the demolition process. 

By 6:43 a.m., crews put out the fire from the ground before making their way upstairs to put out remaining hot spots. 

The cause of the fire is still under investigation. 

Mayor Edwards, alongside EBR Director of Development Rachael Lambert and BRPD Chief TJ Morse, are set to speak at the former hotel at 10 a.m.

WATCH THE NEWS CONFERENCE HERE: