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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Resident undaunted by warning

Some people have to be told twice not to burn trash illegally, as crews from the Spokane Valley Fire Department found out this week.

Firefighters were called to an address in the 7200 block of East Fourth Avenue on April 20 and found a homeowner burning garbage in a barbecue, said assistant fire marshal Bill Clifford. “Our crews responded, told them what they were doing was illegal and to put it out,” Clifford said.

They appeared to be complying, so the firefighters left. “Just about the time they returned to the station, another neighbor called in,” Clifford said. “They were adding fuel to the fire.”

The violators were reported to the Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency and may now face fines for illegal burning, Clifford said.

During the week ending Wednesday, Valley Fire responded to a higher-than-usual 219 calls. A chimney fire and a suspicious shed fire near Pines Road and Interstate 90 on April 16 were followed by a more serious fire at Euro Woodworking at 111 N. Vista Road on April Wednesday. A bucket of sawdust had been left under a chop saw and the sawdust apparently caught fire, Clifford said.

Firefighters also responded to an illegal fire in the 3300 block of North Girard Road on April 16 and found a large debris fire. A Toyota pickup was discovered on fire in the 12100 block of East Cataldo Avenue just after midnight on Tuesday. The suspicious fire is under investigation, Clifford said.

There were four hazardous materials calls during the week. One involved a natural-gas line that was dug up by accident and another was to investigate an unknown substance in the road that turned out to be water dumped by a street sweeper. Another call was to clean up a small oil spill and nothing was found for the last call of a reported natural-gas odor.

Thirteen motor vehicle accidents sent five people to the hospital with minor injuries. On Tuesday the fire department responded to Splash Down to provide a ladder so the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office could climb over the fence in search of two theft suspects. Firefighters also assisted a resident whose wheelchair was stuck.