Spokane7
65°
August 10, 2011 in City
23 apartments burn in 3-alarm N. Spokane fire
Quinton Baker was asleep in his bottom-floor apartment early today when he heard pounding. It was his upstairs neighbor, frantically trying to alert him to a blaze that was threatening to engulf the building.
“By the time I turned around there were flames coming in the sliding door,” Baker said. He doesn’t believe he would have made it out in time were it not for his neighbor, Michael Gonzalez, 33.
“Thank God for this guy,” said Baker, 29. “He’s an angel right now.”
Baker and Gonzalez are among dozens of residents displaced by the three-alarm fire, which started just about 7:40 a.m. at the complex at North Division Street and East Magnesium Road.
“I’ve never seen fire move so fast,” Baker said. Neighbors said they’d heard the blaze may have been started by a cigarette discarded onto a pile of cedar wood, but Assistant Fire Chief Brian Schaeffer said it’s still under investigation.
The blaze destroyed 23 units at the Peter Square Apartments, 22 of which were occupied. All residents escaped unharmed, but at least one cat died.
Many residents said they had no insurance.
“After this, I will always have renter’s insurance,” Gonzalez said.
Fire crews arrived to find large amounts of smoke and flames coming from the building near the roof.
“When the companies got here, the building was well involved with fire,” said Spokane Fire Chief Bobby Williams.
Crews abandoned the building and turned their attention to protecting an adjacent structure and pouring water on the burning building from the outside, the chief said.
“The fire had too much of a head start,” Williams said.
After crews arrived and realized how big the fire was, commanders called out a second alarm and then upgraded it to a third.
The fire department sought help from adjacent fire districts under mutual aid agreements.
Gonzalez scorched part of his hair when he ran back into his apartment to save a computer. His girlfriend, Debra Whitacre, 24, grabbed the couple’s hard drive as she left with their 2-year-old son. The device contains family photos, including her son’s baby pictures.
“It’s funny you think to grab that stuff before you grab your wallet, your keys,” Whitacre said. “All I cared about were those photos.”
Resident Alfonso Ramirez, 19, said he awoke to the sound of shattering glass, saw flames out the window and fled.
“I didn’t have time to grab anything,” said Ramirez, who has lived at the apartment complex with his girlfriend for three or four months.
Firefighters rescued Megan Mann’s two cats, Kurt and Maximus, from her water- and smoke-damaged apartment. Maximus was drenched from what Mann believes was water used to fight the blaze, but both felines were uninjured.
Resident Jeffrey Black had accounted for two of three cats but considered himself fortunate.
“There are a lot of people a lot worse off than me,” he said.
Akway Omot and his five children lost their home in the fire, and he didn’t immediately know what they were going to do. The Red Cross is assisting him, but Omot, a United States citizen who moved from Sudan 18 years ago, said he lost all his belongings.
“I didn’t even get my wallet,” he said.
Baker is in a similar situation. He was already planning on moving but his belongings, including his birth certificate and Social Security card, were in boxes in the living room. Fire officials told him nothing is salvageable. He’ll stay with family until he decided what to do next.
“It’s like you almost have to re-create yourself,” he said.
Mike Prager contributed to this report.
Human trafficking suspects released 
The_Seer on August 10 at 9:49 a.m.
When was the last time the SFD actually saved a structure?
jddavis on August 10 at 10:09 a.m.
Glad everyone made it out alright. This could have been really bad!
tjsmom484 on August 10 at 10:36 a.m.
There was no hope of saving that builiding. Just glad everyone was out safely.
jimmy on August 10 at 10:47 a.m.
There are numerous fires that the SFD fights where they save the structure. You just don’t see them on the news or read about them in the paper. As a retired 25 year member of the SFD, I would like to extend an invitation to the above commenter to grab some bunker gear and run into the next burning building he sees… and as far as this particular fire this morning, the building to the south of the fire building was saved. That was due to the aggressive and smart tactics my brothers and sisters use to protect exposures. Include the fact that all the tenants are accounted for, and no firefighters were injured and the fire was contained to the building of origin, I would not hesitate to call this a good stop.
RedCedar on August 10 at 10:54 a.m.
At least everyone got out okay. Can we assume this was not a sprinklered building? I thought all apartment complexes larger than a certain size had to have sprinkler. Maybe the old ones are grandfathered in.
reservedparking on August 10 at 10:58 a.m.
Really good stop, considering how much of a head start the fire had.
Good job, SFD. Tenants uninjured, saved exposures, and everybody goes home.
Seer: your ignorance is showing.
jimmy on August 10 at 11:25 a.m.
Red Cedar: Sprinklers are required based on height of structure, square footage or type of occupancy, and these buildings probably were not required to be sprinklered.If they had been, we never would have seen or heard about this fire, because the fire would have stayed and been suppressed in the unit it started in.
meadman on August 10 at 6:00 p.m.
Seer, you clearly are clueless. Don’t reveal your lack of knowledge & common sense — join the FD (if you can even complete the testing process) to learn what fighting a working fire is all about.
misjustice on August 10 at 6:25 p.m.
Condolences to all the victims of this fire.
Renter’s insurance is so important for folks that don’t own their home. It’s inexpensive, too. A basic policy can be purchased for under $20.00 per month.
Hopefully a cause of the fire will be identified and this story will be updated.
Squid on August 10 at 6:25 p.m.
As a retired 25 year member of the SFD, I would like to extend an invitation to the above commenter to grab some bunker gear and run into the next burning building he sees…
Have you ever really seen a firefighter run anywhere on a call??
Ever hear the expression “SFD saved another foundation?”
The SFD management is on par with the SPD management.
Is two days on and ten days off really hard working?
tobiasg on August 10 at 7:20 p.m.
Renter’s insurance, combined with vehicle insurance in many cases drops the premium down to below simple vehicle insurance…essentially making it free or being paid to have it.
I’m glad everyone is safe.
Smokie on August 10 at 7:25 p.m.
Squid, I have ran (with 50 to 60 pounds of gear) on plenty of fires. Ran into the buildings on fire. Ran to the burning gasoline tanker on fire. Ran to throw ladders against a house to save people trapped on an upper story. I’ve ran on other calls too. Have ran into a house where a mom is trying to revive her dead baby. Have ran to intubate a young man who had collapsed from asthma. I’ve also ran away from bullets. I Have ran a lot. Everyone I know at SFD has ran a lot.
I don’t know any department that has two days on and ten days off.
You’re uninformed, but I have to say when it comes to running, you’re pretty good about running your mouth about things you know nothing of. Go crawl back under your rock.
misjustice on August 10 at 7:40 p.m.
I think that you’re off base, squid.
I watched the SFD when my neighbor’s house was on fire and those guys were amazing. Despite the gas cans and other things exploding in the garage all around them, and the lookie-lous getting in the way, and the fire having so much fuel because my neighbor never mowed his yard or made a defensible space around the structure, and the waning light, and the numerous other things that make their jobs more difficult they hit the ground running and did not stop until the fire was out. They saved part of the structure, btw. And then, during the next several days, they periodically came by to ensure that no embers had started up and that the fire was truly out; which helped the rest of us on the block feel safer about our houses.
At any rate, I think that you are wrong, squid. I’ve seen these guys at work. And they have my thanks, and respect.
Bruce (aka thatoneguy) on August 10 at 7:51 p.m.
Well, buildings that people live in sometimes burn down, and firefighters belong to a union, so therefore unions destroy people’s lives.
See how easy that is?
meadman on August 10 at 7:58 p.m.
Squid and Seer = combined IQ of 22. Put your credentials where your (huge) mouths are and tell us all what your firefighting experience is…
Squid on August 11 at 2:29 a.m.
Sorry, but I have never seen the fire dept. run, but admittedly I live in Spokane County, so I have little experience with the SFD.
What I have seen is a house on Dyer and 44th saved, and then burn to the ground the next day. The station was less than 6 miles away.
I have also seen Jack Kestelle’s house catch fire, I called the Fire Dept. and it took them 45 minutes to show with one truck, then the next two came an hour after that, then another 8 trucks came, but it burned to the ground. If the fire fighters moved any slower, they would be in reverse. The station was less than 2 miles away.
I have also seen a house on 35th and Cuba catch fire from a Christmas tree that came close to burning to the ground, because the SFD was in extra slow motion. I have never seen anyone move as slow as the close to 50 fire fighters did. It’s like they tried to watch it burn. It was all I could do to keep from screaming at them to move.
I also remember a hay truck (Semi) on 55th and Palouse Highway catch fire, and burn to the ground. Took the fire Dept 20 minutes to respond. The station was a couple blocks away.
I just remember what I see. I have more stories if you want.
Squid on August 11 at 2:36 a.m.
I didn’t make it clear that the house on 44th and Dyer caught fire twice in 24 hours, because the fire was put out, and it came back to life the next day. No one was watching it. The owners were surprised to come back from their vacation to find out they had no house and that the SFD saved it once, and then lost it the next day.
Most of us would be fired (excuse the pun) for allowing that to happen.
Apparently the fire fighters have never had their own house catch fire, or they would work harder.
Smokie on August 11 at 6:14 a.m.
Squid, I am sorry to hear that your friend at 44th and Dyer Rd’s house burned down. However, when you say,
“The owners were surprised to come back from their vacation to find out they had no house and that the SFD saved it once, and then lost it the next day.”
I think that they should have been more surprised that City of Spokane Firefighters put out a fire in their house which is not in city limits.
Let me state it for you in more plain terms. Looking at a map right now. 44th and Dyer is not in the city. SFD wouldn’t have been the department to respond.
You should probably stop now. I can, however, barely wait for you to weigh in on other city topics from a county perspective.
Again, your rock is waiting. Go crawl under it.
reservedparking on August 11 at 8:47 a.m.
Squid, if ignorance is bliss, you must be very, very happy.
Squid on August 11 at 4:06 p.m.
My first line of my first post: “admittedly I live in Spokane County, so I have little experience with the SFD. ”
Who is ignorant?
By the way, doesn’t the SFD respond to large fires in the County, like the one on 44th and Dyer? I can’t say for sure, but I think they were there. I don’t read badges or labels. Not very interesting to me.
Smokie on August 12 at 10:12 a.m.
Squid, the county may occasionally request an engine from the city for a house fire in the county, but the SFD crew is not running the fire. They are minor players. Chances are the SFD was not at this fire. If they were, they did what they were told by the county fire folks and went back to the city very quickly.
You say,
“I don’t read badges or labels. Not very interesting to me.”
Yes, you are a lazy one. The truth does not interest you in the least bit. So, keep on spouting off on topics you have no knowledge of and have no desire/energy/integrity to research. Keep insulting those who would give their lives for you, not because they are heroes but because it’s their job.
Rock. Calling. You. Go crawl back under.
Squid on August 12 at 11:32 a.m.
Imagine that!!!! Hehehehe….. A guy who works two days a week calling me, a guy who works seven days a week, lazy!!!! Hehehehehe!!!!! And when you work those two days, you actually only work a couple hours, at best!!! Hehehehe!!!!!!
You’re funny!!!! Say something else that’s funny!!!!
OK, I’ll redefine the problems I have with the SFD, SCFD, and just about every other Government job(s)…… The management is less than poor and the Unions amplify the poor performance. You should be required to WORK for your money! If I was in charge, you would be working five days a week, required to hustle, no lollygagging or shuffling in a crisis, production would be rewarded, loss would be penalized, and I would find something for you to do in your downtime…… Just like every other job in the World…… Job performance, not time on the job.
Now go back under your rock and sleep till your next call. Maybe watch some porn while you wait. Buff your helmet, polish your snorkel, and wax your hose, if the trucks are already spit shined.
Squid on August 12 at 11:40 a.m.
Oh…. I almost forgot….. Just like every other job in the World, you wouldn’t get paid overtime on a SALARY job. YOU are part of the reason why our country is broke!
Don’tcha wish I was your boss?
Smokie on August 12 at 4:17 p.m.
You are the reason our country is broke, Squid.
People who can’t admit they are wrong and, instead of learning from their mistakes or bettering themselves, they just seek to perpetuate the same erroneous beliefs that are unfounded in fact or reason. It’s a lot easier and you don’t have to admit your mistake - which you are still refusing to do.
All the while, we circle the drain because of you.
Your grandparents and parents would be ashamed of what you have done to their country with your sloth. I guess you can laugh at that if you want.
Just got off shift where I worked a full 24 hours - lots of calls. no sleep. I am sorry that your AMWAY career takes up all 7 days of your week. As for you wanting to be my boss, you would have had to graduate from high school first.
Our country is broke because of selfish people who would slit their own throats rather than help another person out. In another words, YOU.
I think you are typical of all those who tear down cops, soldiers, firefighters, teachers and all who serve - fat, lazy, uneducated and just plain whiny.
All of the above professions have helped you or look forward to helping you - no matter how much you hate us or spread lies about us. That’s what we are about.
But for now - Rock. You. Crawl. Under.
Squid on August 12 at 10:10 p.m.
I’m not fat!!!! I’m just big boned.
Smokie on August 13 at 10:05 a.m.
Fair enough.
__Dan__ on August 20 at 10:07 a.m.
This building is (was?) at least 20 years old, so the building codes of the day would not have required sprinklers. IF, the building had been sprinkled as today’s codes would require, coverage would have included the decks where this fire seems to have begun. Damages would have likely been limited to the area of origin, and everyone would have slept in their own beds that night.
So, let’s do something proactive here… @Spokane City Council, Spokane County Commissioners, Spokane and Spokane County Building and Fire Departments, and various Spokane County fire districts — Is it time for fire protection sprinkler retrofit ordinances yet? “Sprinklers Save Lives…and Property!” The next fire might cost lives…and one life is too many! (Trust me…I know!)