KENNEWICK — A series of fires forced eight people out of their homes, destroyed a nearly $800,000 home and damaged a Pasco business.
Firefighters across the Tri-Cities were kept busy between Saturday and Monday with two house fires, a haystack fire and a small fire set in a parking lot.
The fires started Saturday morning when a haystack started burning inside an open-air storage building at Zen-Noh Hay at the Port of Pasco, said Ben Shearer, Pasco Fire Department’s public information officer.
They continued on Sunday when a family of six fled their home at 10 Sharron Street in Kennewick about 1:50 p.m., Kennewick Deputy Chief Michael Heffner said.
Also on Sunday, police ended up arresting a woman who started a fire in the Claybell Park parking lot, according to a Richland police Facebook post.
Finally at 2:40 a.m. on Monday, two former Pasco School District employees escaped a blaze that destroyed their West Pasco home, Deputy Chief Ed Dunbar told the Herald.
A woman suffered some minor burns and was taken to a local hospital.
The couple had lived in the Court Street home for years, and recent spikes in home prices had raised the value to more than $780,000.
Zen-Noh Fire
Firefighters were called to Zen-Noh Hay about 6 a.m. on Saturday after a fire started inside 1,500 tons of hay that was being stored inside.
The fire also spread to the pole building where it was stored, and destroyed a front loader.
All of the 1,500 tons hay stored in the building was lost to the fire, Shearer said. No Port of Pasco facilities were involved, said port officials.
Fires in hay bales are difficult to put out, Shearer said. While firefighters were able to put out the worst of it, Zen-Noh employees are continuing to monitor the remaining hay after spreading it out, Shearer said.
Employees were still monitoring it on Monday.
The company takes bales of hay and turns it into cubes to be shipped to beef and dairy cattle farmers in Japan.
This is not the first time the company has been struck by fire. The business had to rebuild a warehouse in 1995 after it burned down.
Sharron Street
Two adults and four children were forced out of their home at 10 Sharron Street after one of the adults noticed signs of fire inside of the home Sunday afternoon.
The Kennewick Fire Department was alerted to the blaze by people calling 911 saying they saw flames erupting from the back of the home.
When they arrived on the scene, they discovered the fire had burned up the back wall of the house and into the attic, Deputy Chief Michael Heffner said.
Firefighters began dousing the blaze on the back of the home. After it was safe, they went inside and pulled down the ceiling to find where the fire had spread to inside of the attic.
Investigators believe the fire that started in the back patio was accidental, but are not certain about the cause.
Heffner explained there were no signs of it being intentionally started.
The family of six are being helped by the American Red Cross.
Kennewick firefighters were helped by Benton County Fire District 1 as well as the Pasco and Richland fire departments. They also had assistance from Kennewick police, the Benton PUD and Cascade Natural Gas.
Claybell Park
Richland police responded to Claybell Park Saturday after callers reported a woman was starting a fire in the parking lot.
When officers arrived, they found the woman holding a lighter and standing next to a pile of burning debris, Richland police said in a Facebook post.
Police officials said the fire was worryingly close to the wood chips that surround the parking lot and several acres of nearby sagebrush.
The Kennewick Fire Department put out the blaze, and the woman was arrested for reckless burning and violating Richland park rules.
Police pointed out that “unauthorized fires” are not allowed in city parks at any time.
It is the second time this month a person has been arrested for intentionally starting a fire at a Tri-Cities park. The first damaged the area near the duck pond at Columbia Park.
$800,000 home
The final fire struck a home at the corner of Court Street and Road 103 in West Pasco.
A retired couple was woken up by smoke detectors about 2:40 a.m. on Monday, Shearer said. They were able to escape the home.
Firefighters arrived shortly after and began to extinguish the fire, which destroyed the home. They were able to save one of the couple’s cars.
The cause of the fire has not been determined.
The woman did suffer some minor burns in her escape attempt and was treated at a local hospital.
Shearer said it is a good example of how smoke detectors can save lives. It greatly increases the chance to escape a house fire unharmed, say officials.
According to public records, the house was purchased in the mid-90s for $239,000, and the value is has risen to $780,000.
The couple, who are in their late 80s, are staying with family.
