Photo courtesy of John Odegard. Seattle – At 4:34 a.m., the Seattle Fire Department’s Fire Alarm Center received 911 calls reporting a fire in an apartment building in the 1800 block of 12th Ave. The first arriving crews reported heavy smoke and flames coming from the second floor of the three-story apartment building. The incident was upgraded to a 2-alarm fire to bring in additional units due to the size of the fire and the proximity of nearby structures.
The fire originated in a unit on the second floor and spread to a unit on the third floor. Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the two units involved. Crews attacked the fire initially from the exterior, knocking down flames before moving to the interior of the structure to extinguish the fire.
The apartment building had nine total units. All occupants safely exited the building on their own. One occupant was displaced and received assistance from the Red Cross.
More than 70 firefighters plus support and command staff responded to the fire.
No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
Update Feb. 28: Investigators ruled the cause of the fire as accidental likely caused by an overheated electrical power strip that ignited nearby combustible materials.
