Brush fires continue to cause problems in Puget Sound region
Mar 20, 2019, 3:31 PM | Updated: 6:51 pm
Fires continued to hit the Puget Sound region Wednesday in the wake of record-setting temperatures.
“At least 25 fires that have popped up since Monday. Many worry it’s going to be a bad summer,” said KIRO 7 TV Reporter Shelby Miller.
Firefighters responded to a two-alarm brush fire in a field filled with tires behind an apartment building in White Center on Wednesday afternoon. The fire spread to the fence next to the homes and eventually to the apartment building itself.
The fire was later determined to be arson, and a suspect was apprehended by authorities Wednesday evening. Two firefighters were transported to Harborview Medical Center with minor injuries.
RELATED: Fires pop up across Puget Sound in wake of record-setting weather
The building is located in the 10000 block of 14th Avenue Southwest, near a homeless camp.
Here’s the area that caught fire in White Center before the fire spread to an apartment building — this is on 14th Ave SW near the White Center Library and Mount View Elementary School. @KIRO7Seattle pic.twitter.com/6aC8qlSP2G
— Michael Spears (@MichaelKIRO7) March 20, 2019
17 mile-per-hour winds in the area initially contributed to the difficulty in putting out the blaze, along with 30 mile-per-hour gusts.
Meanwhile, a 25-acre brush fire hit Eatonville around the same time. According to Miller, three-quarters of the fire was initially contained, but not controlled. As of 6:15 p.m. Wednesday, the fire continued to burn.
Homes in Eatonville were evacuated as a precaution, but nothing is believed to be threatened.
A brush fire also hit Thurston County on the 9000 block of Valley Green.
Just yesterday, a brush fire in Mossyrock burned almost 120 acres.
