4:44 PM: Seattle Fire has a full response arriving in the 3700 block of Belvidere SW [vicinity map] and has declared it a “working fire.” Updates to come.

(Added: WSB photos unless otherwise credited)

4:46 PM: Firefighters told dispatch that everyone has gotten out safely.

4:49 PM: They’ve just declared the fire “under control.”

(Added: Photo sent by SeanO)

4:53 PM: And now SFD says the fire is out. They’re dismissing some units.

5:12 PM: Our crew at the scene has talked with a resident who confirms no one was hurt, and with the incident commander, who says the fire was limited to the garage. They expect the residents to be able to go back in soon.

11:23 AM: A Seattle Fire Department “full response” is headed to a home in the 6500 block of 39th SW [vicinity map]. The dispatch was for “a lot of smoke” inside the house, possibly from a “basement kitchen.” Updates to come.

11:27 AM: Incident command reports, “We just have smoke, no fire,” so they’re downsizing the response.

9:31 PM: Thanks to everyone who’s sent photos of that short-lived fire by the former Pecos Pit building on 35th just south of the entrance to the bridge. SFD reports it’s out and classified it as a “dumpster fire.” No other info yet.

9:39 PM: Police are investigating. No injuries reported.

9:44 PM: Matching tonight’s photos to Google Street View, it was the dumpster corral just south of the ex-restaurant, which closed abruptly 10 months ago. (We recently asked City Light, the property owner, about their plans for it, and they replied, “The site is currently being evaluated for City Light’s purposes as part of our larger real estate portfolio. We are looking at both short-term options and long-term activation for utility purposes.”)

ADDED 4:43 PM THURSDAY: We followed up today. First, here’s a photo of the aftermath:

We also requested the police-report narrative, which did not identify a cause for the fire but focused on reports that people had been living in the enclosure:

At 9:25 PM On October 24, 2025, I [Ofc. X. XXXX #9054] saw a large dumpster fire as 3F21, located at 4400 35 Av SW.

The call detail:

While en route to a separate call, I saw a fire burning just south of the Pecos Pit BBQ [4400 35th Av SW] in the dumpster area. Upon arrival, a passerby stated that her friend lives in the enclosure. I checked the perimeter of the fire and did not locate any person. The passerby had left before I was able to contact her. SFD engine 32 responded to the fire shortly after our arrival and were able to successfully neutralize the blaze and did not locate a person inside.

I spoke with the clerk of the nearby 7-11, who was inside the store when the fire broke out. He was unable to provide any information regarding the suspects responsible for the fire.

I interviewed XXXX, who had stated that he lived in the nearby apartments and had called our dispatch center earlier to report the fire. XXXX stated that he had witnessed a white male, thin, black hoodie, black pants, and a backpack leaving southbound on 35th. Furthermore, he stated that he had seen the same person living in the enclosure with a white female for approximately the past two weeks. The two had been a frequent presence in the area and were seen panhandling at the intersection of Fauntleroy WY S. and 35th Ave.

The narrative concluded by noting that SFD’s investigator Marshal 5 decided not to go to the scene.

11:07 AM: SFD has a “full response” arriving in the 2700 block of 61st SW [map] for what’s described as a fire in a “low-rise residential building.” Updates to come.

(Added: Reader photo, firefighters checking other apartments in the building)

11:10 AM: The fire is said to be centered in one apartment of a 3-story “garden-style” building.

11:14 AM: The fire is under control. No injuries reported.

11:18 AM: SFD says the fire “was contained to one unit on the second floor.” Some responders are being dismissed. Their investigator will look into what started it.

(Added: Reader photo)

9:20 AM: Avoid Sylvan Way in the Home Depot vicinity for a while. SFD has a midsize response for what’s described as a “large structure fire in the woods,” after what might have been a propane explosion. They’re blocking Delridge/Orchard too.

9:25 AM: Past the north side of Home Depot, police say one eastbound lane is open.

9:34 AM: Police report “fire is starting to pull their hoses out of the street” so this is wrapping up. No word of any injuries.

8:37 AM: Seattle Fire has a full response in the 8100 block of 16th SW [map]. Avoid the area.

8:40 AM: SFD describes this as a vacant building but says it’s evacuating neighbors as a precaution. Meantime, police are blocking traffic “in all directions” at the scene.

(WSB photos)

8:49 AM: Our crew has just arrived and reports plenty of smoke in the area. Photo added.

9:01 AM: Above, our crew reports heat from the fire appears to have damaged siding on a neighboring house. No injuries reported so far. Neighbors tell us they heard an “explosion” just before the fire broke out, and they say this house had a fire callout earlier this year (we’re looking that up).

9:11 AM: SFD says the fire is under control. Here’s our report on a fire at the same house in January. The archived SFD log reminds us that fire was also in the morning, with a callout just after 9 am. That fire sent two people to the hospital but so far, SFD confirms to us, no injuries related to this one.

9:38 AM: Just talked to the incident commander. They suspect a propane tank (which would explain the “explosion” neighbors report hearing). Some units are being dismissed.

10:03 PM: Seattle Fire has a “full response” headed to a possible fire in a “commercial building” at 20th/Henderson. Updates to come.

10:07 PM: First unit arriving at the scene says it appears to be an exterior fire, possibly originating in a vehicle. But another firefighter just told dispatch they need to check inside because it might have spread.

10:12 PM: Firefighters report “smoke in the hallway” on first floor. Adding reader photo above; we have a crew on the way. … According to the address SFD crews just gave, it’s a residential building.

(Photo by Tim Durkan)

10:20 PM: They traced the fire to a unit, firefighters have told dispatch, but still believe it started with a vehicle; it’s under control.

(Added: Texted photo)

But northbound Delridge Way is blocked by the large response, avoid the area.

(WSB photo by Torin Record-Sand)

10:23 PM: They now believe two units were affected.

10:31 PM: They’ve declared the fire tapped (out). No report of injuries. … Here’s the vehicle it’s blamed on; our crew reports being told this pickup truck’s engine seemingly “exploded”:

(WSB photo)

10:43 PM: The incident commandeer confirms to our crew at the scene that no one was hurt.

(Added: Texted photo)

11:19 PM: Delridge is now open all ways, police have told dispatch. Meantime, our crew has left the scene but photographer Tim Durkan is still there and tells us there’s now suspicion that the fire started in a portable toilet and THEN spread to the truck and on to the apartments.

ADDED 12:14 PM FRIDAY: Here’s what SFD spokesperson David Cuerpo says about the investigation:

The fire involved a portable toilet stall and a car, both located next to an apartment building. The fire extended to the building and caused significant damage to two apartment units. No injuries reported. Investigators ruled the cause of the fire as undetermined.

Thanks for the tip. SFD has responded to what its log classifies as a “dumpster fire with exposure” at California/Alaska. Our tipster says they heard a “large bang” before the sirens. Apparently not a major fire as SFD is already dismissing some units. SDOT camera in the area shows SFD units on SW Alaska along the south side of the Hamm Building (home to businesses including Easy Street Records).

4:35 PM: Seattle Fire has a full response in the 2500 block of SW Barton, describing it only as a “commercial building.” We’re headed that way to find out more.

4:42 PM: We’ve confirmed the original dispatch was for a “kitchen fire” at Westwood Village McDonald’s. Many of the responding units have been dismissed. One person is reported to have been treated for burns and/or smoke inhalation. The fire was quickly put out.

4:49 PM: Our crew at the scene reports it was believed to be a fire in a fryer. No major interior damage but there’s cleanup to do so the restaurant will be closed for some hours, possibly the rest of the night.

4:59 PM: SFD has closed out the call and its remaining crews are departing.

5:08 PM: SFD says the person who was treated is an “adult male” who has been taken to a hospital and is “in stable condition.”

11:15 PM: A Seattle Fire “full response” is headed to an apartment building in the 3200 block of Harbor Avenue SW, where a 911 caller reported seeing flames from the third floor. Updates to come.

11:17 PM: First units arriving report “heavy smoke.”

11:19 PM: Now they’re reporting the fire is out and they’re reducing the response.

11:29 PM: Seattle Fire has a “full response” headed to a possible house fire in the 8800 block of 12th SW [vicinity map]. Updates to come.

11:32 PM: First units on scene say it was a small fire, “now out,” and most of the response is being canceled.

Last night we were about to publish photos of the smoky sunset when breaking news intervened. Tonight, another chance – this is at least in part because of a fire that’s been burning for three and a half weeks on the Olympic Peninsula. Above and below are photos by James Bratsanos.

And this one is from Gene Pavola:

P.S. Here’s one of the photos we almost published LAST night, sent by Steven Rice:

The Bear Gulch Fire has now burned across more than 3,000 acres.

11:37 AM: SFD is at a “brush fire” call in the EC Hughes Playground (28th/Holden) vicinity and we’re told smoke is visible from some distance, so in case you’re wondering too, that’s what’s happening. We’re headed over for a look.

11:42 AM: Texter (who sent the video added above, showing the smoke) says it’s on the SW Kenyon side, near homes. Fire risk is high – checking the weather stats, we note that the rainfall total is nine inches below what we’d normally have in the “rain year” (since October 1).

12:01 PM: Kenyon is blocked at EC Hughes. Firefighters are still hosing down the southwest side of the park.

12:33 PM: SFD has departed and Kenyon is open again. (Added: Photo above shows scorched slope on southwest side of the park, past the baseball field.)

8:04 PM: Multiple texters are reporting another fire at Westcrest Park, again off 8th SW, again with fireworks blamed by neighbors, and one sent the photo above. Highland Park’s Engine 11 is logged to the call – this time categorized as “rubbish fire” – right now.

9:44 PM: Checking the log again, the call finally closed around 9 pm, after an hour and a quarter.

(WSB photos unless otherwise credited)

7:06 PM: Firefighters are at 8th SW/SW Trenton right now, working to put out a “brush fire” on the west edge of Westcrest Park. The smoke was visible for miles as we headed there to check it out. Flames charred the slope at the Trenton street end too, west of a park retaining wall, close to apartment buildings.

Fireworks? 911 callers were reporting “booms.” Police are there investigating, too.

(Reader photo)

8:02 PM: An hour and a half after the first SFD crew arrived, the last one just left. Thanks to D for photo we’ve added above, showing why the smoke was visible from afar -leaping flames at one point.

The scanner is hopping with “explosion” calls all around the peninsula. In this dry time of year, this is what can result, as just reported by Rose in Admiral:

Some jerks drove up to our traffic circle at the corner of 39th and Lander and deliberately threw a loud firework into the dry grasses, which caught fire. The flames consumed about a1/4 of the vegetation before my neighbors and I managed to put it out carrying bowls of water and a watering can because no one’s hose could reach that far. We had it out by the time the firefighters arrived (bless them). The police also arrived.

1:24 AM: Mid-size callout this past half-hour for a fire in the 5000 block of 26th SW. They’ve just declared it “tapped” – out – and assessed it as an “exterior” fire. No injuries reported. We’ll follow up on the cause later this morning.

ADDED: SFD tells us, “Crews were dispatched to 5000 block of 26th Ave SW for a report of a possible electrical fire. They arrived and extinguished a small fire on the exterior of a home. No injuries were reported.”