(Video and photo by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
New information today on the Genesee-area garage/pickup-truck fire last night covered by WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli (here’s our original story). We heard today from homeowner Kristiana Lockman, who says, “We lost both the truck and the garage, which will have to be torn down and replaced.” Her husband owns WEdesign (WSB sponsor); she says the fire is believed to have been caused by “the spontaneous combustion of rags (in the back of the truck) that were used to stain a client’s deck,” and we have confirmed that with Seattle Fire spokesperson Lt. Sue Stangl.
Kristiana adds, “We’re very relieved that we were home when it happened and that no one was hurt. And we’re immensely grateful to the two teams of firemen who responded quickly. They were efficient, kind and went out of their way to be helpful, even helping my husband board up the garage and the fence that was cut into before they left. … We’re grateful they do what they do so well.”
12:27 PM: En route to a house-fire call in the 9300 block of Forest Court SW, which is near Fauntleroy Park. Most of the units are being canceled, so it’s not major. More to come.
12:48 PM: Finally got there to check (it’s on a secluded dead-end street). Kitchen problem – “food on the stove,” as the official Fire Department term for such incidents puts it. No serious damage, no injuries, SFD tells us.
(Photo by WSB’s Patrick Sand) 3:04 AM: Big response for what so far sounds like a relatively small fire in the 2600 block of Alki 59th SW. It’s already “tapped,” per the scanner, and most of the units are being canceled. Thanks to everyone who has called and texted. More to come.
(That photo and next two, courtesy Josh & Ali Daniels) 3:20 AM: Crews are already checking the ventilation of the building where the small fire happened and getting ready to let residents go back in, according to radio traffic. Our crew is almost there to doublecheck on the scene. The reason it sounded so big is that the initial callout for a “fire in building” call is always big – 15 units, in this case – easier to get everything going and then pull back, rather than to get there and find out you need more.
3:34 AM: Our crew at the scene talked with the building’s owner, who confirmed something we had heard via scanner in the early going – the fire is believed to have been a case of floor solvents spontaneously combusting – he says one of the tenants had been doing some floor work. No injuries reported, and everything’s wrapping up at the scene, which is on 59th immediately north of the Alki Playfield tennis courts.
4:09 AM: Thanks to Josh & Ali Daniels (who run JayLee Photography) for sharing some photos taken before we got there – including the one above this line, showing how smoky the scene was for a while.
9:29 AM: The official Seattle Fire account is here – only added detail is that damage totaled $500.
(TOPLINE: Water Taxi evacuated 7:30 am after smoke led captain to return it to dock. Service resuming at 11:30 from Pier 50 with Melissa Ann)
(Added, photo by Christopher Boffoli for WSB – firefighters on board Rachel Marie) FIRST REPORT, 7:38 AM: Just got an alert that the West Seattle Water Taxi is having mechanical trouble and has returned to Seacrest. Jana, who was on the sailing, tweeted that a “strong smell (was) emanating from the engine room.”
And now the Fire Department is headed there as a fire response. More to come.
(Photo by Christopher Boffoli for WSB) 7:45 AM UPDATE: About half the units have been canceled, as they have determined it’s not a major fire after all, but what’s there is still causing a traffic jam-up at Seacrest in addition to having interrupted Water Taxi service.
7:50 AM UPDATE: And yes, if you’ve heard a helicopter, it’s related – at least one media chopper was checking out the situation. Per scanner, we’re hearing that they have not found flames – just some “burned wires” so far. Updated a few minutes later – apparent “burned-out alternator.” A city fireboat is at Seacrest too – just added photo from WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli.
8:05 AM UPDATE: Harbor Avenue remains blocked around Seacrest. Thanks to Toni for this overview:
No indication of injuries at this point. Update regarding service, from Christopher:
Rachel Marie captain Tara Rochester tells me that they had just departed Seacrest for downtown when the Rachel Marie started to fill with smoke. They returned to the dock. Everyone got off OK. One of the engines was on fire. Rochester says no replacement vessel available now but they’ll probably have something worked out for the afternoon.
8:20 AM UPDATE: April, who’s on board the 37 after having been evacuated from the Water Taxi when it returned, says she and others then had to wait to get through on Harbor. In comments, Paul says the road has just reopened, and WSB’s Patrick Sand at the scene has just confirmed that.
8:27 AM UPDATE: SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore has briefed the media at the scene. He says captain Rochester did all the right things in getting Rachel Marie back to the dock so everyone could get out safely. The fire was confined to the engine room. TRAFFIC UPDATE – Patrick reports that while traffic is being allowed to use Harbor going TOWARD the bridge, the westbound direction toward Seacrest is still blocked at Fairmount.
9:03 AM UPDATE: Harbor Avenue has reopened, according to police. Here’s our video of the briefing by SFD’s Moore:
Water Taxi management says via a text alert, “Plans for repairs and resuming service are under way.”
(Photo by Christopher Boffoli for WSB) 10:38 AM UPDATE: Forwarded by County Councilmember Joe McDermott, who chairs the board that oversees the King County Ferry District, including Water Taxi matters, an update from Paul Brodeur, county Marine Division director:
This morning’s incident on the RM was a failed alternation on the port generator.
This is a small (one gallon milk jug size) 12 volt electrical unit that charges the batteries which start the prime mover. Just to put it in perspective, your car has one of these alternators which also charges your cars battery. This failure caused smoke -NO FIRE – When the captain was notified of the smoke, she took appropriate action and the trained crew responded by securing fuel and air to the engineroom.She secured the vessel at the dock and the crew debarked the passengers with no injuries. The Us Coast Guard and the Seattle fire department responded and Seattle fire provided assistance.
The USCG is currently aboard and taking crew statements. We are awaiting their investigation and permission to move the vessel back to pier 50 at which time service can resume using the Melissa Ann.
11:14 AM UPDATE: The Rachel Marie has headed downtown (per MarineTraffic.com and a sighting from Sunny near the pier). We’ll update when we see/hear Melissa Ann taking its place. (A few minutes later) From Councilmember McDermott: “We are notifying passengers that we will resume West Seattle service with the 11:30 a.m. Pier 50 sailing. Our current plan is to repair the Rachel Marie this afternoon in time for the afternoon/evening sailings.”
4:10 PM UPDATE: Jeff Switzer with King County DOT confirms that Rachel Marie has been fixed and cleared to return to service, and should be leaving downtown around 4:15 pm.
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand; top picture substituted 1:49 pm for original iPhone pic) 1:02 PM: Big response headed to a fire call at an apartment building in the 9000 block of 20th SW (map). First arrivals are seeing some smoke from the building’s fourth floor, per scanner traffic. We’ll have updates from the scene shortly.
1:10 PM: Fire’s under control, per scanner.
1:13 PM: Added photo from the scene. Smoke no longer showing from the building.
1:22 PM: Fire’s reported out. Still some traffic trouble in the area (Delridge/20th). We’re expecting to talk soon to the incident commander for more official information.
1:30 PM: Seattle Fire spokesperson Kyle Moore is there and we should be talking with him soon. We’ve also heard from the neighbor who says he called 911 to report the fire, Jeff at eGreen Landscaping, whose business is right next door on Delridge: “We reported it to 911 and then ran up and alerted the building manager, who hit the building fire alarm.”
1:35 PM: Moore says the fire was confined to a bedroom in one apartment. No injuries. (Update: Here’s video of his briefing:)
Investigators are working to figure out how it started; all the other residents will be allowed to go back inside. The woman who lived in the burned unit wasn’t home at the time; her cat might have been inside, and fire crews were looking for it.
5:23 PM UPDATE: Seattle Fire has just published a report here – saying the fire has been ruled accidental, and was “likely” started by a lamp in the bedroom. The report also notes that damage is estimated at $45,000 – and that the resident was reunited with her cat.
2:29 AM: If you’ve been hearing the sirens, there’s a fire response at apartments in the 9100 block of 45th in Fauntleroy (map). More to come.
2:36 AM UPDATE: The fire is “tapped,” according to the scanner. It’s in the end unit of a garden-style apartment building.
2:55 AM UPDATE: Firefighters have been working to make sure the fire hadn’t spread beyond the apartment where it began. As for whether anyone was hurt, the incident commander is deferring comment until the public-information officer arrives.
3:47 AM UPDATE: SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore says a woman was found dead inside the apartment where the fire broke out – after the fire was knocked down, firefighters found the body of what Moore described as an elderly woman, about 10 to 12 feet inside. (added) Here’s his briefing, unedited:
They’re still trying to find out what started the fire; so far, Moore said, it appears to have started in the living room, which is where the victim was found. He said she was a longtime resident of the second-floor unit, to which the fire was contained. The fire was called in by neighbors, who, according to Moore, banged on the door to try to see if the woman was OK – but got no reply.
4:32 AM: One more note – the address of the building has been corrected from the original dispatch; it’s in the 9000 block of 45th SW, not the 9100 block. We’ll update this story later when there’s new information from investigators.
2:02 PM UPDATE: Investigators say the fire was started by “improperly discarded smoking materials.” Here’s the update on SFD’s Fire Line site. Cause of death and identification will have to come from the Medical Examiner, possibly later this afternoon.
8:49 PM: Seattle Fire Department crews are arriving at a home near 39th and 102nd and reporting “light smoke” visible. We’re on the way and will have updates as more information is available. It does not appear to be a major fire, though – all but three crews have been canceled.
8:57 PM UPDATE: Our crew is there and says it was a small fire contained to a terrarium where a turtle lives. The residents are checking on the turtle.
10:52 PM UPDATE: In case you haven’t seen this in the comments already – a neighbor says the turtle is OK, though a bit shell-scorched.
(Photo added: Christopher Boffoli caught Ladder 11’s crew as they too prepared to roll away)
The call’s at California/Genesee. En route to check it out. (added) Our first crew there says it looks like a false alarm – the crews have been canceled.
(WSB photo from May 14)
Four weeks ago, Poggie Tavern in The Junction reopened after damage from a fire in May kept it closed almost a month. A local band sends word of this benefit tomorrow (Friday) night:
The Poggie Tavern caught fire and had to close for a while. My band VikingRaider.com is hosting a Dance Contest there July 6th to help get them going again. It’s from 9 pm to 11 pm. Music goes till 1 am.
We are giving away prizes from the local West Seattle merchants, many have been donated. Zamboanga, Twilight Artist Collective, Husky Deli, and C&P Coffee are among the merchants participating. We got some rocking rhythm and blues featuring Dr. Harp and Ron Bronstom on Harmonica backed by the VikingRaider.com band. Grand Prize at 11 pm; also, prizes after The House Is A-Rocking, Jumping Jack Flash, and Stray Cat Strut.
10:01 PM: We’re in the 2200 block of California SW, where fire crews are checking out a “fire in building” call. More shortly.
10:03 PM UPDATE: It’s NOT a “fire in building” as per the original call – a bush/tree caught fire near Mind Unwind, the gallery/event venue a couple buildings north of the ex-Blockbuster.
10:14 PM UPDATE: WSB contributor Christopher Boffoli sent the photo above after also checking out the scene; he says a witness saw the small fire sparked by fireworks.
Over the past several days, we’ve mentioned the Seattle Fire Department setting today as the date for taking Ladder 13 out of service – the truck added to West Seattle more than a year ago to make up for the fact that extra crews from points east couldn’t get to big incidents over here so easily while there was no SODO access to the westbound West Seattle Bridge. That problem’s over now that the new onramp is OK for emergency use. So last night, we covered what turned out to be L13’s final call, a crash a few blocks away; this morning we stopped by the station right before 8 am, when we had heard the truck officially would go out of service. Indeed, the 8 am tone and roll-call announcement sounded over a speaker, and with that, the crew said, they were done. From left in our photo, Ladder 13’s final crew – Mike McDonald, Lt. Jim Dallas, Scott Marcus, Matt Reilly, and Babe Witter.
21st SW south of Croft Place has just reopened to traffic, after most fire crews left the scene of a small early-morning fire at a vacant house in the 6500 block. (The house is almost completely hidden from the street, behind the white fence at the left side of our photo.) No injuries reported, and SFD was working to figure out what caused it, and whether it was intentional or accidental. (Scanner traffic noted that a silver Toyota Tacoma pickup truck was stolen from a neighboring home, and police were trying to find out if that was somehow related.)
Just in case you saw/heard the big response – the fire reported in an apartment building in the 2200 block of SW Barton was a small electrical fire that was put out fast. No injuries reported. Building’s being ventilated right now.
(TOPLINE: 5 teenagers, reported at the scene to be celebrating the end of the school year at an Auburn high school, went to the hospital after someone added some kind of “accelerant” to a fire in an Alki Beach fire pit, resulting in what witnesses described as an “explosion.”)
(1st 2 photos by Christopher Boffoli for WSB) 9:12 PM: We’re arriving at Alki where multiple emergency crews are tending to what we are told may be a case of someone with burn injuries … more momentarily. It’s happening at 59th and Alki SW – police are handling traffic control in the area – steer clear of there TFN. One witness describes what happened as a “fire pit explosion” and we are told more than one person has been transported to the hospital.
9:19 PM: Nearby resident Ben Hutchinson reports what he saw, and shares two photos:
About 20 minutes ago (20 minutes before the time of me sending this email), I was sitting in my room using my computer, when I heard a loud explosion. It sounded like maybe an illegal large/homemade firework exploding. I went outside to see what was going on. From the balcony of my apartment, I saw some burning material outside the fire ring just to the left of the fire ring. It appeared to be in the middle of the pile of belongings that the group of people had who were at the fire ring. Also to the right of the fire ring, I saw some burning material about 20 feet away. They people were throwing sand on, and stomping on the fire to put it out. I quickly pulled out my cellphone and to a picture on the phone’s camera, but they’d put out the fire by the time I pulled it out.
Other witnesses tell us at least two people were transported. We’ll be adding Ben’s photos shortly.
9:24 PM UPDATE: Christopher Boffoli was the first photojournalist there for WSB and tells us that fire crews told him five people have been taken to Harborview Medical Center with burns. He was also told that this was an end-of-year gathering involving students from Auburn; someone threw gasoline on a bonfire, and that’s what led to what multiple witnesses describe to us as an “explosion.”
10 PM UPDATE: Still awaiting info from formal briefing by Seattle Fire. Some online discussion cites witnesses as saying it was a “gas can,” not fluid itself – we’ll find out soon what SFD has determined.
10:21 PM UPDATE: Briefing by SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore is over. He says the five victims are all “high-school age” – two males taken by SFD medic unit have serious burns, two other male victims and one female with less-serious burns were transported to hospital(s) by private ambulances. Investigators are still trying to officially determine exactly what the “accelerant” and reported container were; the fire marshal is en route to the hospital to interview the victims who are OK enough to talk with him. We have the full briefing on video and will upload it to add here when our crew is back.
11:28 PM UPDATE: Seattle Fire has posted its account – only new information includes the degree of burns, 2nd and 3rd degree for the boys described as seriously burned. (Above this line, we’ve added the unedited video of the SFD briefing.)
TUESDAY MORNING: Police have also posted their online account; its only new detail is affirmation that their Arson/Bomb Squad is handling the followup investigation.
Almost four weeks after an early-morning dumpster fire that spread to the exterior of Poggie Tavern in The Junction – here’s our coverage from May 14th – the Poggie is finally open again, as of about an hour ago. In our photograph, that’s bartender Amy, who explains that in addition to repairs required by smoke damage, they also took the opportunity to do some other work inside. (Thanks to Deborra for the tip!)
2:33 PM: For the second time today, there’s a major Seattle Fire call on Delridge – though the first crews report the fire tapped. We’re en route.
2:47 PM: Only one unit left at the scene in the 4800 block of Delridge; the temporary traffic snarl at the scene is clearing since the other units have gone. Working to find out what the short-lived fire was attributed to. The fire’s blamed on some trash in the backyard, which is currently being hosed down. (The house isn’t visible in the photo – it’s tucked between townhomes.)
ORIGINAL 6:31 PM REPORT: A large Fire Department response has headed for Alki Point in response to a reported boat fire. So far, though, they’re not finding anything.
6:41 PM UPDATE: Per scanner, the Coast Guard has found a boat that had a small fire “put out by occupants.”
If you live near the Highland Park home where longtime community advocate Martha Mallett and son Brian escaped from a fire in early May, you’ve probably already seen this – but in case you were among those who came to the post-fire neighborhood benefit from other parts of West Seattle, a neighbor sent us this photo to share, to be sure everyone who helped knows they’re appreciated. (We haven’t heard how the fire survivors are doing now, but we’re checking.)
The fire call we covered on SW Kenyon Saturday night turns out to be one of two “suspicious” fires now under investigation by police. After this comment from the homeowners in the 2400 block of SW Kenyon (map), where firefighters handled what was described at the time as burning debris, we checked this morning with Seattle Police, and here’s what they told us: It’s been determined that fire was set in a pile of yard debris, and spread to the house. While that fire briefly drew a full “fire in single-family residence” response, another one about a block away at 24th and Holden at almost the same time drew a much smaller response (and isn’t even on the call log) – it was in a trash can on the sidewalk, according to police, who say the only damage done was to the plastic can, which melted. SPD media-relations Det. Mark Jamieson tells WSB that while witnesses say they believe they saw three young children set the trash can fire, there were no witnesses at the larger fire on Kenyon. No injuries reported in either incident, and no arrests so far; the investigation continues.
4:19 AM: Big fire response to the 4700 block of California in The Junction. Even as we head that way, SFD has reduced the response, though. More to come.
4:32 AM UPDATE: The address for the call, 4717 California SW, is the Poggie Tavern, and WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand, at the scene, says that’s where fire crews are working – in the back, on the alley. No flames.
4:44 AM UPDATE: The incident commander has just briefed media crews (TV is there too), saying the fire started in a dumpster in the back of the building. The interior isn’t affected but there was some damage to the back.
4:54 AM UPDATE: Crews are also cutting into the roof for ventilation because of the “extension” – the area the original dumpster fire had spread to before somebody called it in.
5:08 AM UPDATE: The crews’ work is winding down. We’ll update later with an official ruling on the fire’s cause. Photo above is the charred contents of the dumpster (as TV crews shone a light briefly).
MONDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore tells WSB, “The 4717 California Avenue SW fire was started in a dumpster. It was not suspicious. The fire caused $5000 to the roof of the tavern. Fire investigators did not investigate.”
5:13 PM NOTE: We called to check on the tavern’s status; they’re closed and might remain closed for up to a week.
ORIGINAL 11:10 PM REPORT: On our way to a house-fire call in the 2400 block of SW Kenyon.
11:18 PM UPDATE: Not a major incident. It appears that something caught fire inside the residence and was thrown or taken outside, and extinguished there. SFD is calling for its investigator, though.
11:21 PM UPDATE: Firefighters tell us some kind of debris in the home’s garage were smoldering, and filled the house with smoke, but again, out now, cause under investigation, no report of injuries.
SUNDAY NIGHT NOTE: The homeowners say in comments that investigators told them the fire was set; we had planned to follow up with SFD tomorrow regarding the cause and will update when we get that info.
ORIGINAL 8:17 PM REPORT: A big response is en route to 17th and Delridge, about a block north of Roxbury, for a “fire in building” call. Police are being summoned to help with traffic control. More as soon as we get there.
8:21 PM UPDATE: SFD has revised the location to 16th and Cambridge (here’s a map). Our crew has just arrived and we’ll have a photo shortly (added above).
8:24 PM UPDATE: The building is a single-story auto shop, according to scanner traffic. Crews have water on the fire and are also ventilating the building from the roof.
Our crew on the scene confirms all of the above. No word yet if anyone was there or has been hurt.
8:38 PM UPDATE: Firefighters have declared the fire “tapped.” Our crew at the scene says there’s no indication of injuries.
9:04 PM UPDATE: 16th SW is reopening and some of the fire units have been dismissed. In comments here and on the WSB Facebook page, Gary, who manages and lives in a building across the street, says first responders did “an awesome job protecting the two apartment buildings on either side of the structure on fire.”
9:37 PM UPDATE: No word on the cause yet. Firefighters were still working on hot spots. A fire-damaged car was clearly visible inside the body-shop building (photo above, one of several we are adding now that our crew is back).
MONDAY MORNING NOTE: Investigators determined over the weekend that an electrical problem started the fire – they say “a short in a 220-volt socket ignited”; damage is estimated at $30,000.
If you don’t know her already – that’s Martha Mallett. She’s the Highland Park resident who along with her son survived a fire at their home last Tuesday (WSB coverage here). On Saturday, she stopped by to see neighbors Lisa and Randy Leininger, who organized a benefit to sell hot dogs and lemonade:
Tonight Lisa shared these photos along with an update on the community’s outpouring:
We had an amazing turnout for our fundraiser on Saturday. It was great to see so many of you come out to show your support for Martha and Brian. Even some of the guys from Fire Station 11 showed up! Because of all your generosity, we were able to raise $1,452 the day of and have received two more donations since then bringing the total to $2000! I know the family is overwhelmed and so grateful, as are we. I feel so fortunate to live in a community that really supports one another. Thank you and big hugs to everyone who donated.
Here’s some of Martha’s family and friends:
We had mentioned on Saturday night that Highland Park Improvement Club‘s annual “Wine for Our Times” fundraiser was planning to donate raffle proceeds to Martha and Brian, since she has been their longtime “raffle queen.” One other donation – look again at the top photo – Lisa says Nicole from HPIC gave Martha the corsage to let them know they were thinking of her though she couldn’t make it to this year’s event!
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