ORIGINAL REPORT< 5:02 PM: A medic response and possible gas leak have Avalon blocked north of Genesee. Buses are being rerouted.

5:10 PM: The area where an odor, possibly gas, is detectable is the same area where a possible leak caused trouble some months back – the former church on the east side of Avalon. We should know more shortly – SFD public information officers have arrived.

5:22 PM: SFD’s Lt. Sue Stangl confirmed to WSB at the scene that this incident involves suicide – the natural gas was running, to the point where it was dangerous outside the apartment where it happened. The air has to clear to a safe level before the road can reopen. Medics tried but were unable to revive the victim. (If you or someone you know considers self-harm, 206-461-3222 is the Crisis Clinic‘s 24-hour line.)

5:41 PM: The road has reopened; Metro has resumed normal routing.

(Photo by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
1:03 PM: Big Seattle Fire response on the way to check out a possible fire incident at the Alaska House apartments, 4545 42nd SW, just north of Junction Plaza Park.

(Added: Photo that Charles took as the initial response continued to arrive)
1:08 PM: The response is being scaled back, escept for four units – likely “food on the stove.”

1:17 PM: SFD confirms that. Christopher Boffoli, on scene for WSB, was told by a resident that a maintenance worker saw smoke coming from a unit and called SFD. Thank you to everyone who messaged us on this – including two WSB’ers who saw the specialized SFD units crossing the West Seattle Bridge and knew that was a sure sign of a potentially major call.

Our foggy Thanksgiving ended with a colorful sunset – if you were up over those low clouds, as was Mark Dale, who shared the views above and below from Gatewood Hill:

From Upper Fauntleroy, Holly‘s view includes part of the Olympics:

And on the northeast side of the peninsula, Brewster Johnston saw the downtown skyline peeking over the clouds:

Thank you to everyone who took the time to share photos tonight!

(UPDATED TUESDAY MORNING with more details from police report – scroll down)

(Photos by WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand, added 7:42 pm)
6:42 PM: Multiple Rapid Ride buses are stopped in Morgan Junction right now on California just north of Fauntleroy as part of a police investigation that’s led to an arrest. We’re still working to find out exactly what happened but avoid the area if you can. More to come.

6:50 PM UPDATE: Our crew at the scene says this is actually happening closer to California/Raymond, north of Graham.

7:00 PM UPDATE: While we have no official information yet, multiple people including commenters say this involved a man pulling a gun on a bus. We’ve reached the King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson, who would speak for the Transit Police, but we’re told that Seattle Police are leading the investigation, so we’re working to get more comment from them.

7:15 PM UPDATE: Police have now confirmed at the scene that the man they arrested is suspected of trying to rob people at gunpoint aboard the bus. Multiple witnesses tell us he was stopped by riders who tackled him.

7:33 PM UPDATE: Just talked with a man who says he was among those who subdued the suspect. He said he mostly wanted to give “a big shoutout to a guy named Joshua” who was the first to “start bringing him down … he did an admirable thing.” He says the would-be robber had pantyhose over his face and a gun that “looked like a large black revolver” and was “putting the gun against people’s faces, grabbing their cell phones.” (Others we’ve heard from mentioned that cellphones appeared to be what the man was after.) How did Joshua try to stop the man with the gun? we asked. “First thing he did was grab the arm holding the revolver and managed to get his finger in” to where he could stop the trigger from being pulled. “We were sitting on (the armed man) trying to restrain him,” and it seemed like five minutes before police arrived, he said.

7:57 PM UPDATE: A few more details from police now, via SPD Blotter: The suspect is 19 years old and got on the bus at 3rd and Pike downtown, but “kept to himself” until the bus arrived in the 6000 block of California SW. After the arrest, police say, the suspect kicked out a squad car’s window, and was subsequently taken to jail in this van we photographed at the scene:

SPD says the suspect was booked for investigation of three counts of robbery.

ADDED 8:23 AM TUESDAY: Some have asked about the detail in the SPD Blotter report suggesting the suspect was seen wearing a mask long before the robberies. We’ve just obtained a copy of the police report this morning, and the officer did indeed write that one robbery victim “said he noticed (the suspect) because (the suspect) had a stocking covering part of his face.” Also from the report, here’s what police say that victim told them about how it unfolded:

(Victim) told me that the bus made it all the way from downtown to the 6000 block of California Av SW. About that time he saw (suspect) rob a female passenger … of her cell phone by sticking a black handgun into her face and demanding her phone.

(Suspect) then stepped across the aisle and pointed the gun into (victim’s) face and demanded his cell phone. (Victim) initially refused to give his cell phone to (suspect, who) then shoved the handgun into the back of (victim’s) head and said, “give me your phone, don’t make this harder.” (Victim) then gave (suspect) his phone. (Victim) told me that (suspect) then walked further down the aisle and shoved his gun into the face of another male passenger … and demanded his cell phone. (That passenger) grabbed the gun and shoved it away from him. (A passenger) then started hitting (suspect), with several passengers … shoving (suspect) to the floor of the bus. (Four passengers in all) held (suspect) down until officers arrived.

We are checking to see if the suspect will appear for a bail hearing this afternoon. The report also says that while he was described as “very agitated and belligerent toward officers and the other bus passengers after he was placed into custody,” the suspect “did not appear intoxicated on alcohol or narcotics.” So far as we can tell from court records, he does not have a criminal history, at least in this state, just a couple of traffic tickets from earlier this month.

(New photo courtesy Chaucer Wells Photography – that’s the capsized boat on the left)
2:21 PM: We’re on our way to South Alki, where the U.S. Coast Guard is helping a small vessel that’s in trouble. Thanks to Sally and Steve for the original tip.

2:31 PM: TV helicopter is hovering over the water – thanks for the texts about that. It’s extremely windy out here, too. No official information yet but Sally and Steve had texted that it appeared some people had transferred from the private vessel to the Coast Guard boat.

2:38 PM: Scanner traffic says three people have been rescued and they’re looking for one more. Beach Drive is closed along Constellation Park for the rescue operations’ shore component.

(Photo by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
Two helicopters are now in the area. The boat is capsized, we can see from shore.

(Updated photo courtesy Chaucer Wells Photography: USCG helicopter dropping diver into the water)
3:00 PM: Divers are in the water and reporting that they have “recovered one victim from the vessel.” We have also heard a report that two of the three people rescued will be admitted to the hospital, while the third declined treatment.

(This photo and next two, by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
3:17 PM: Seattle Fire says the patient recovered from the water is “unconscious and unresponsive” and had been in for about half an hour. He is reported to be undergoing CPR while being taken to Harborview Medical Center.

3:39 PM: Our remaining crew at Alki Point says the Coast Guard is leaving with the capsized boat. Beach Drive is open again at the scene. We’ll be adding more photos, as well as updates as we get them.

4:25 PM UPDATE: Via Twitter, SFD says five people were on the boat. Their fireboat Chief Seattle (above) was part of the search/rescue off Constellation Park, as was a Seattle Police Harbor Patrol boat (at right, below).

4:54 PM UPDATE: The capsized boat was towed to Don Armeni – this photo was shared by Patrick Binns:

Thank you to all the readers who shared photos and texts/calls as this unfolded. To get a sense of just how windy and choppy it was at the time, check out this brief clip by WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli:

6:08 PM UPDATE: We just talked with Kyle Moore from Seattle Fire, whose Station 14-based divers rescued the captain of the boat, found in the wheelhouse somewhere between half an hour to an hour after the boat flipped. Moore says the captain remains in critical condition; the other three admitted to the hospital are satisfactory. He says the Coast Guard is the agency that mentioned a fifth person rescued – SFD never saw or treated that person, so Moore has no further details. USCG had taken the other three to Fire Station 5 downtown after rescuing them before SFD was even called in to join the search. Still no official word on exactly whose boat it was and what it was doing.

12:58 AM: As noted in comments, our partners at The Seattle Times report that the man who was pulled out by divers didn’t make it. The Times reports that the boat and its crew were from Ballard Marine Construction, doing survey work when this happened.

(WSB photo added 8:37 pm)
7:26 PM: Seattle Police say (via scanner) they’re closing Admiral Way between 47th and 49th after a vehicle hit a pole. No word of serious injuries, but “the pole is ready to come down,” one officer warned. More to come.

7:53 PM: Seattle City Light is on scene. The impact actually detached the pole at its base; no word how long the road will be closed. The driver apparently was not seriously hurt, but was being questioned by police.

11:29 PM: Still closed, per commenters.

12:58 AM: Happening right now in the 3000 block of Avalon Way (map) and vicinity – police are looking for a driver who ran away after her car rolled over.

1:08 AM UPDATE: Thanks to Tyler for the photo. As you can see, at least one parked car was hit (thanks also to Kim for that additional detail – and the photo below, showing more of the scene).

1:17 AM UPDATE: Per scanner, the suspected driver, described as a 30-year-old woman, has been found about two blocks away, and will be checked out by SFD medics.

(Photo by Tony Bradley)
1:36 PM: We’re getting word that a car-motorcycle crash at East Marginal Way South and South Spokane Street (map) involves a fatality. That’s according to Seattle Fire via Twitter; the motorcycle rider was killed, while the car’s 55-year-old driver is being taken to a hospital “as a precaution.” More to come.

(Photo by WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand)
4:05 PM: Investigators are still at the scene, so motor vehicles should avoid the area (bike path unaffected).

8:07 PM: Seattle Police have just published an update via SPD Blotter, saying they believe the motorcycle rider, 24 years old, was speeding:

… Preliminary investigation indicates that a 24-year-old man was driving his white Yamaha motorcycle southbound on East Marginal Way South at a high rate of speed and passing vehicles using the bicycle lane. As the motorcyclist approached South Spokane Street he struck a green Isuzu Trooper SUV that had been travelling southbound on East Marginal Way South and was initiating a westbound turn onto South Spokane Street. The force of the collision caused the motorcyclist to be thrown from his motorcycle, and he subsequently sustained fatal injuries.

Fire department medics responded and pronounced the motorcyclist deceased at the scene. King County Medical Examiner’s Office personnel responded and took custody of the deceased man.

The 50-year-old driver of the Isuzu was transported to Harborview Medical Center via ambulance for precautionary reasons. Officers evaluated the driver of the Isuzu for signs of impairment; none were detected. …

The motorcycle rider has not been identified; his name isn’t likely to be made available by the Medical Examiner’s Office before tomorrow.

(UPDATED late Sunday morning with new information from police)

12:45 AM: Police and fire are on the scene of a crash in the 4800 block of West Marginal Way SW and sounds from the scanner as if one person is dead at the scene. More to come.

12:54 AM UPDATE: Seattle Fire verifies via Twitter that one person is dead and another seriously hurt. This is reported to involve a vehicle hitting a tree at high speed.

1:45 AM UPDATE: Just back from checking the scene. West Marginal Way SW is closed in that area, as you’d expect, in the heart of the industrial zone on one side, greenbelt on the other. The car is small and reddish, and officers at the scene were referring to it as a Ford Focus.

3:30 AM UPDATE: Road’s still closed. We’re hoping for more information on the crash later this morning. Meantime, while the 911 log put the location as the 4800 block, comparing maps to the location we saw while out there, we would say it’s more in the early 5000s.

10:41 AM UPDATE: Just in from SPD Blotter:

On 10/13/13, just shortly after midnight, a vehicle was S/B on W. Marginal Wy in the 4800 block, at (according to a witness) a very high rate of speed.

The driver lost control and struck a tree, causing the vehicle to roll over several times.  The driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The passenger was taken to Harborview Medical Center by Seattle Fire Dept in critical condition.  The collision was witnessed by a tow truck driver, who stated the vehicle was going over 100 MPH. 

6:41 PM: We’ve just arrived at the scene of another crash on SW Roxbury – this time just east of the Safeway entrance. Two vehicles has collided, and one has some smoke coming from its engine compartment – so Engines 11 and 37 are both here along with police. The response has SW Roxbury completely blocked, so if you’re heading this way, you can’t get west of 26th or east of the store, for now.

6:48 PM UPDATE: No indication of serious injuries. We’re told the smoke might have been from one vehicle’s battery – extremely acrid-smelling, we can attest.

7:28 PM UPDATE: Per the scanner, police are now reopening Roxbury.

(Photos by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
3:48 PM: And another crash that’s being investigated right now – a 6-year-old boy is reported to have been hurt, apparently hit by a car, at California/Lander, the Lafayette Elementary/Admiral Safeway/Hiawatha intersection. That’s all we know – we have a crew on the way.

3:57 PM: Per scanner, the child will be taken to a hospital. More police are headed to the scene to help get information from witnesses.

This is also likely to affect traffic for a while, so avoid the area.

4:32 PM: Southbound California was closed at the scene at last report, and northbound was down to one lane, per WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand. Photo added – though we haven’t confirmed whether the child was riding the bicycle you see in the photo or walking with it. Still trying to find out his condition, too.

4:44 PM: From the scene, WSB contributor Christopher Boffoli reports that traffic is now open both ways. Police told him the investigation is ongoing and they have not determined if the driver will be cited – they did say the driver remained at the scene afterward.

5:21 PM: We just got the first official comment on the child’s condition, from police via Twitter – “minor injuries.” Police confirm he was on his bicycle and describe the driver as a teenage girl.

5:36 PM: And we have heard back from SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore, who says that while the boy was taken to Harborview as a precaution, he had no visible injuries, and was stable when transported. He was wearing his helmet; his mom was with him, Moore said, but was not hurt.

9:05 AM: Thanks to those who tipped us to an operation in The Junction this morning involving King County Sheriff’s Deputies seen in the parking lot behind businesses in the 4700 block of California SW. A KCSO spokesperson at the scene told WSB that they are investigating possible “illegally obtained alcohol” and had a warrant to search Puerto Vallarta Restaurant. They are questioning “several people” but had not made any arrests as of the time we spoke with them. Deputies also are at a home about a block away. We are working to find out more and will add to this story as we get additional details.

10:22 AM UPDATE: We noted the presence of at least one Washington State Liquor Control Board agent at the scene, so we asked LCB spokesperson Brian Smith if his agency has any additional information. He says it’s a KCSO operation and they “are there at KCSO’s request to provide technical expertise.”

3:11 PM UPDATE: Update from KCSO spokesperson Sgt. Kathleen Larson, who we spoke with this morning at the scene; she provided an update via e-mail: “Today Detectives with the King County sheriff’s Office served a search warrant at the Puerto Vallarta Mexican restaurant in the 4700 block of California Ave. SW. The owner of the restaurant is suspected of buying alcohol stolen from local retail stores and using it in his business. The suspect is a 47 year old male. He was booked into the King County Jail for Investigation of Trafficking in Stolen Property and Organized Retail Theft.” We also have confirmed that the house searched a block away is that of the restaurant’s owner. We don’t know yet what was found at the two locations, but we did note boxes being loaded into a law-enforcement van behind the restaurant earlier this afternoon.

FRIDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: The suspect, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, is being released from jail this afternoon, with a decision on charges or no charges to be made at a later date.

(Photo added 5:08 pm; by WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand)
3:49 PM: If you’ve noticed a big emergency response headed toward Harbor Avenue – it’s for a powerboat reported to be taking on water off Jack Block Park. Some of the responders have already been canceled, but others are continuing on. More as we get it.

3:55 PM UPDATE: Via scanner, the boat’s now been assessed as a 1960s-vintage wood boat, about 22 feet long, nobody on board, and they’re trying to figure out if it’s a “derelict vessel.” The fireboat Chief Seattle is on scene, per MarineTraffic.com; we have a crew headed that way. Scanner also indicates this is likely abandoned and the boat will be impounded if possible; the fireboat’s crew is reported to be doing a “stability survey.”

10:02 AM: Though the 911 log says Roxbury/Olson, the big emergency response happening right now is some blocks west of there, according to our crew, near 12th SW. At first, it was thought a pedestrian might have been hit, but it’s been determined that a 40-year-old man, as described in radio communications, apparently became disoriented/ill and “wandered into traffic,” possibly a blood-sugar problem. County and city crews are on scene and the man is being taken to the hospital now, so the scene should clear before too long.

10:30 AM: Just verified with SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore – the victim basically “lay down in traffic,” and the location was 11th/Roxbury.

10:22 PM: On our way to check out what was initially dispatched as a “heavy rescue” at 16th and Trenton. At least one private ambulance has been called. More shortly.

10:45 PM UPDATE: As is frequently the case with “heavy rescue” calls, this one involved a flipped vehicle, one of two involved in a collision in the northbound lane of 16th SW just south of Trenton. Police have just reopened southbound 16th.

10:56 PM: Added two photos we took at the scene. One person is reported to have been taken to Harborview Medical Center. If we get any more info later tonight or tomorrow morning, we’ll add it here.