Seattle Firefighters Trapped When Warehouse Collapses

Four firefighters were trapped following an explosion in a burning warehouse near the Kingdome Thursday night, and three others were hospitalized with minor burns.

The main floor of the warehouse collapsed following the blast and the trapped firefighters were believed in a basement beneath the first floor, said Georgia Taylor, a Fire Department spokeswoman.

“It’s not looking good,” she said.

The fire quickly went to five alarms after being reported shortly after 7 p.m. PST in a warehouse occupied by Mary Pang’s Food Products Inc., which includes a frozen food processing operation, and Mary Pang’s Chinese Cooking School at Maynard Avenue South and Dearborn Street.

More than 100 city firefighters fought the blaze. A grim-faced Mayor Norm Rice arrived shortly before 9 p.m. but made no comment.

Firefighters who fled the building after the explosion reentered the structure to try to find their missing mates but had to proceed cautiously because the roof appeared ready to collapse.

“We’ve sent them in as far as we can,” Taylor said.