Neighbor douses apparent arson attempt
Spokane Valley firefighters are seeking information about an apparent arson that was foiled by a neighbor.
Fire Marshal Kevin Miller said someone piled wood outside a house 10505 E. 14th Ave. Monday night and ignited it.
The home was occupied, but no one was injured. Miller said the house sustained only slight damage because a neighbor saw the fire about 9:20 p.m. and quickly extinguished it.
Miller appealed for anyone with information about the fire to call the Spokane Valley Fire Department at 928-1700 or to make an anonymous report by clicking on the “Arson Tip Form” link on the department’s Web site at www.spokanevalleyfire.com.
The arson was one of four minor structure fires reported in the seven days that ended Wednesday.
One was a structure fire in name only. It turned out to be a house filled with steam from the relief valve of a water heater.
A couple of automatic alarm systems also were misled. Miller said fumes from an after-hours painting project set off an alarm at Boston’s pizzeria Sunday.
A day earlier, a security guard’s microwave popcorn sent firefighters to the Honeywell manufacturing plant at 15128 E. Euclid Ave. at 1 a.m.
Other fire calls included a small grass fire near Havana Street and Sprague Avenue, ignited by fireworks set off at the end of a Spokane Indians baseball game. Miller said the fireworks crew extinguished the fire before firefighters arrived.
He said firefighters also responded to six illegal backyard fires.
“Just because we’ve had a little bit of rain here recently doesn’t mean we’ve lifted the ban yet,” Miller said.
As usual, most of the department’s calls – 138 of 189 – were for medical emergencies.
Those don’t include eight vehicle accidents, three of which sent people to hospitals.
Miller said two people suffered head and neck injuries and one had a back injury in a two-car crash about 11:50 a.m. Aug. 28 at 32nd Avenue and McDonald Road.
Another two-car crash, about 5:50 p.m. Wednesday, also sent a victim to a hospital with a neck injury.
Later Wednesday, about 10:30 p.m., firefighters had to pry a vehicle open to rescue a victim in a three-car crash at Trent Avenue and Argonne Road. Miller said the victim was taken to Valley Hospital with multiple injuries.
Three calls for general service included a couple of familiar kid-in-car calls.
One mother found herself locked out of her car Wednesday when she walked around it to remove her baby at the Dairy Queen at 1221 N. Pines Road.
A similar incident on Aug. 28 was so near Station 7, at 12th Avenue and Evergreen Road, that the mother just walked over to get help.
Miller said the third service call was reported as a ruptured water main in the 1000 block of North Mullan Road, but firefighters found a broken lawn sprinkler.