Fatal Fire Investigation Continues

Investigators poked through charred rubble for a fifth day Tuesday, seeking clues to the origin of a warehouse fire that killed four firefighters.

Seattle Fire Department officials insisted they had reached no conclusions as to the fire’s cause, despite a KIRO-TV news report Monday that two unidentified department sources had said it was arson.

“The people conducting the investigation have said that it is suspicious at this point, and they will not go any further than that,” department spokeswoman Georgia Taylor said Tuesday. “Any other high-ranking official or lowranking official who may or may not have an opinion isn’t involved in the investigation.”

The five-alarm fire Thursday night destroyed the building, which housed the Mary Pang Food Products Inc. foodprocessing company, a bakery and a rehearsal space for a rock band.

Today, as many as 5,000 fire fighters from across the United States and Canada are expected to attend a memorial service for the dead firefighters at the Seattle Center Arena.

After comments from officials including Gov. Mike Lowry and Mayor Norm Rice, a procession of firefighters and fire trucks will move from the center to the Westin Hotel downtown.