Firefighters respond to house fire on 43rd Street NE

Incident Date:  1/8/14
Issuing Officer:  Joe Meinecke
Incident Location:  4587 43rd ST NE
Incident Type:  Residential Structure Fire

Narrative:  At 11:18 am, Firefighters from stations 2, 3, 4, 9, 11 and 12 responded to a reported house fire.

The first arriving engine company found smoke showing from the second floor of the two story approximately 1,700 square foot house. Crews attacked the fire with handlines and conducted a search of the building to confirm that no one was trapped inside.

No occupants were home at the time of the incident and there are no injuries to report. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

UPDATE:  The probable cause of the fire was the spontaneous combustion of discarded rags damp with paint thinner. The fire did an estimated $28,000 damage to the building and its contents.   

House fire 3500 block S. Sheridan Ave.

Incident Date:  1/6/14

Issuing Officer:  Joe Meinecke

Incident Location:  3525 S. Sheridan Ave. 

Incident Type:  Residential House Fire

Narrative:  At 3:27 PM, Engine 2  responded to a reported wall fire in a house. Upon arrival, the engine company noted smoke showing from the eaves on both sides of the 1 1/2 story approximately 1,500 square foot structure. The response was quickly upgraded to a full residential alarm, bringing additional resources from stations 1,2,4,7,and 8.

Crews attacked the fire that was burning in the attic area with handlines, ventilated the roof, and conducted search and rescue to confirm no one was trapped inside the structure. All occupants were able to escape without harm and three adults and four children were displaced in the blaze. 

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

UPDATE:  The cause of the fire was failure of electrical wiring in the attic space, resulting in an estimated $23,000 damage to the building and its contents.  

    

Safely dispose of your Christmas Tree

TFD encourages you to remove and recycle your natural Christmas tree as soon as possible. Never burn the tree, decorations or wrapping paper in your fireplace or woodstove. 

For City of Tacoma residents…

Landfill drop off:  Tacoma residents and businesses in Tacoma may dispose of undecorated and unflocked Christmas trees for free by bringing them to the Tacoma Landfill between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Jan. 2, through Monday, Jan. 20. 

Curbside collection:  The City will only collect undecorated and unflocked Christmas trees that have been cut and placed inside brown yard waste containers with lids closed flat. Decorated or flocked Christmas trees cannot be recycled and must go in the garbage, and Christmas trees left next to containers will not be collected. Customers with specific questions about Christmas tree recycling may call 3-1-1 or (253) 591-5543.

Whats the rush? After Christmas people tend to stop watering their tree. Check out this video to see the difference between a wet vs.dry tree fire. 

Electrical short sparks house fire on S. Cushman Street

Incident Date: 12/29/13

Issuing Officer: Joe Meinecke

Incident Location: 2542 S. Cushman St.

Incident Type: Residential House Fire

Narrative:  At 5:39 pm, Firefighters from stations 1,2,4,9,12,13 and 17 responded to a reported house fire. 

The first arriving company found smoke showing from the first floor of the approximately 2,200 square foot two-story house. Crews made a quick interior attack and knocked the fire down that had started in the living room area. One occupant was able to escape without harm and there were no injuries to report. 

The cause of the fire was an electrical short in the wiring for a floor lamp resulting in an estimated $40,000 damage to the building and its contents.

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Unattended cooking causes Eastside apartment fire

Incident Date: 12/29/13  

Issuing Officer: Joe Meinecke 

Incident Location: 2076 E. 56th St.

Incident Type: Apartment Fire

Narrative: At 3:21 pm, Firefighters from stations 2,8,9,10,11,12,17 responded to a reported apartment fire.

The first arriving company found heavy smoke and flames showing from a ground floor apartment of the approximately 4,000 square foot four-plex. Crews attacked the fire with handlines and searched the apartment of origin and unit above to confirm no one was trapped in the building. All occupants were able to escape safely and their were no injuries to report. 

The cause of the fire was unattended cooking resulting in an estimated $38,800 dollars damage to the apartment of origin and $8,000 to the second floor unit directly above.

Relocation assistance was requested from the Red Cross for two families displaced in the blaze.

 

Firefighters respond to house fire on S. 25th Street.

Incident Date:  12/24/13
Issuing Officer:  Joe Meinecke
Incident Location:  2218 S. 25th St.
Incident Type:  Residential Structure Fire

Narrative:  At 12:44 PM, Firefighters from stations 1,2,4,8,9,11 and 17 responded to a reported house fire.

The first arriving company found heavy smoke showing from the one story approximately 1,000 square foot residence. Crews attacked the fire with handlines, prevented the fire from spreading to a nearby house, ventilated the roof, and searched the structure to confirm no one was trapped inside.

Seven occupants, two dogs, and (with the help of a fire crew) a pet python were all able to escape the blaze without harm. There were no injuries to report. Relocation assistance was requested from the Red Cross for one adult and four children displaced in the fire.

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

UPDATE:  A fire investigator determined that the cause of the fire was a child igniting combustibles with a lighter, resulting in an estimated $116,000 damage to the building and its contents.

Firefighters battle three unrelated blazes in a three hour span

Incident #1

Incident Location: 1648 E. 31 Street
Incident Type: Detached Garage Fire

Narrative:  At 5:44 PM, Firefighters from station 1,2,7,8,9,11 and 15 responded to a reported detached garage fire.

The first arriving company found heavy flames and smoke showing from a 1,392 square foot single story detached garage that had been converted into a “mother-in-law” apartment. Crews mounted an aggressive attack, protected nearby exposure structures, and confirmed that no one was trapped inside the structure. The Red Cross was requested to provide relocation services to 2 adults displaced in the incident and there were no injuries to report.

The cause of the fire was undetermined, resulting in an estimated $60,000 damage to the building and its contents.

Incident #2

Incident Location: 6841 S. Fife Street 
Incident Type: Residential Structure Fire

Narrative:  At 6:29 PM, Firefighters from station 1,2,4,8,9 and 15 responded to a reported house fire. The first arriving company found flames and smoke showing from the approximately 900 square foot one and a half story home. Crews attacked the fire with handlines, ventilated the roof and conducted search and rescue to confirm no one was trapped inside.

One person was transported to an area hospital for evaluation from the incident and the cause was determined to be intentionally set. Tacoma Police Department arrested one suspect and the fire resulted in an estimated $112,000 damage to the building and its contents.

Incident #3

Incident Location: 1440 Port of Tacoma Road
Incident Type: Commercial Structure Fire

Narrative:  At 8:29 PM, Firefighters from stations 1,2,9,11,and 12 responded to a reported commercial structure fire. The first arriving company found smoke showing from 450 square foot single story office building. Crews made entry into the structure and found fire in the wall and ceiling area. Crews quickly extinguished the fire, limiting the damage to that area of the building.

The cause of the fire was a malfunctioning HVAC unit resulting in an estimated $15,000 damage to the building and its contents.