Transient ignites bushes at Marriott

Spokane Valley Fire Department crews had a busy but relatively uneventful week from Jan. 24-30, responding to 240 calls.

There were, however, at least two calls that raised some eyebrows. Crews were called to the Mariott Residence Inn at 15915 E. Indiana Ave. Tuesday afternoon for a reported trash fire. “A transient had started a fire to stay warm, but the fire was in the bushes of the hotel,” said assistant fire marshal Bill Clifford. “I think he was just told to be on his way.”

Crews also responded to a report of a carbon monoxide detector that was sounding in an apartment in the 12600 block of East Broadway Avenue at 3:50 a.m. on Jan. 24. The carbon monoxide detectors carried by the crew did not sound any alarm and no trace of the gas could be detected, Clifford said. “The resident admitted to smoking a hookah pipe before the alarm went off,” he said.

There was only a single major fire during the week, reported at 9:15 a.m. Monday in the 21000 block of East Wellesley Avenue. Crews reported seeing smoke coming from the peak of the roof when they arrived.

The tenants said they had noticed an odor of burning plastic the night before and had shut off the power on the second floor. The cause of the fire is likely an electrical problem, Clifford said. The fire caused $50,000 in damage, largely because firefighters had to cut holes in the roof.

Crews also responded to 15 car accidents, a child who accidentally locked himself in a bedroom, a leaking fire hydrant and a semitruck that hit a utilities box.