Fire at funeral home in South Seattle was intentionally set
Funeral home fire was intentionally set
Seattle fire officials say two fires were intentionally set in South Seattle Wednesday morning, and police are actively investigating.
SEATTLE - An investigation is underway into what started a fire at a funeral home in South Seattle on Wednesday morning.
What we know:
Before 4 a.m., crews responded to reports of a fire at a commercial building near South Oregon Street and Rainier Avenue South.
When firefighters arrived at the location, there was a well-involved fire at the Columbia Funeral Home and Crematory. Crews quickly exhausted the fire before 5:30 a.m.
The fire was captured by traffic cameras in South Seattle as it burned bright red. Russ Weeks, President of the Columbia Funeral Home, says he first got a call about the flames around 6:30 a.m. from his manager.
"I turned on the news like everybody else, and saw the traffic camera video footage and saw what had happened with the person on the front porch, and then starting the fire," Weeks said.
Seattle Fire has determined the funeral home fire was intentionally set. Weeks says he doesn’t know what would motivate someone to burn the business down.
"It's, it's just another sign that we have a broken world, and people are broken and hurting," Weeks said. "I was just concerned about our decedent safe."
The backstory:
Russ and his brother took over the funeral home in 2008 after family friends retired, but caring for the community’s loved ones has been a long-standing tradition in their family when the two took over for their parents in the 90s.
"The funeral business is really about service and helping people. And I really learned that when our son died, that's when it really settled in on how important it was, and it's it's just really a sacred calling or a sacred duty that we're allowed to join a family for a brief period of time,"
The funeral home’s chapel was gutted by the fire. Fortunately, Russ says no staff were inside. They had eight human remains and at least 100 urns in their care, all of which are safe and sound.
"I'm extremely glad that, yes, no one was hurt, no staff were within the building and that all the decedents are safe," Weeks said.
The funeral home reached out to families who have loved ones in their care and say they are going to operate temporarily out of their Kent location while they search for a new place nearby.
As for the long term, Weeks says they’re looking to rebuild.
Owners say other funeral homes have reached out in support, offering their help in any way they can.
Local perspective:
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. No injuries were reported.
Some of the roadways were blocked, but later reopened.
Weeks doesn't believe they were targeted, as just before 4:30 a.m., crews responded to a fire at a home under construction on South Hanford Street in the Mount Baker neighborhood. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire, and searched and evacuated nearby homes as a safety precaution.
Officials also said the fire was considered suspicious.
No injuries were reported, and the fire is under investigation.
Late Wednesday morning, fire officials said both fires were intentionally set and the Seattle Police Department will handle the investigation.
Funeral home fire in South Seattle
Authorities are investigating two fires in Seattle; one at a funeral home in Columbia City and another in the Mount Baker neighborhoods.
The Source: Information in this story came from the Seattle Fire Department.
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