Two-alarm fire damages Vancouver office building

A two-alarm fire that apparently started in some shrubbery damaged an east Vancouver office building Sunday night.

The fire was reported at about 8:15 p.m. at 11101 N.E. 14th St., a two-unit office building that is part of a complex bordered by Interstate 205 on its west side.

When firefighters arrived, they found an arborvitae fire that was threatening the building, which houses Cascade Park Chiropractic Clinic and A New Life Christian Counseling Center. Smoke was coming from the vents in the crawl space and the roof, and the building was full of heavy smoke, so firefighters ordered a second alarm. That brought a total of 20 firefighters to the scene.

The fire appeared to have started in the shrubbery along the freeway, melted some plastic vents, and burned into the crawl space, firefighters said. Firefighters had to cut a hole in the floor of the building to gain access to the fire.

Meanwhile, firefighters using a ladder truck found that embers from the fire had caught pine needles on fire on the roof. That fire was quickly doused as other firefighters concentrated on the crawl space.

The fire was declared under control at 9:15 p.m. No injuries were reported.

The Vancouver fire marshal will investigate the cause of the fire.

According to county property records, the modern, one-story wooden building is owned by Fieldstone Properties of Vancouver. No damage estimate was immediately available.