Photo by John Odegard

Firefighters responded to a report of smoke in the area of Greenwood Ave and NW 85^th Street at 4:09 this morning. When firefighters arrived on the scene they saw smoke and flames coming from the roof of a one-story  building in a block that contained three restaurants, a coffee shop, a theatre and a beauty school.  No one was inside the building where the fire occurred and the residents of nearby apartments to the east of the fire were safely evacuated. One firefighter suffered a minor ankle injury.

Firefighters also evaluated a number of cats inside a nearby PAWS animal shelter and waited until representatives from PAWS arrived to care for the animals.

Nearly 100 Seattle Firefighters fought the three-alarm fire for more than two hours before it was under control. Firefighters initially attacked the fire from inside the building but a decision was made to fight the fire defensively after a roof collapsed and it became too dangerous to stay inside the building.  Firefighters were able to contain the fire to one building and save the adjacent structures except for some smoke and water damage.  

Firefighters will remain on scene throughout the day to watch for smoldering hot spots. Due to the instability of the structure where the fire occurred, it may take fire investigators several days to determine the cause of the fire.

Photo by John Odegard

Photo by John Odegard

Photo Courtesy of Phinneywood.com

Photo courtesy of Phinneywood.com

Photo courtesy of Phinneywood.com