Investigators working to find cause of Studio K fire

March 30, 2016 Updated Wed., March 30, 2016 at 12:02 p.m.

By Rachel Alexander rachela@spokesman.com (509) 459-5406

An early-morning fire Wednesday destroyed a vacant South Hill business building along the busy 29th Avenue corridor.

The three-alarm fire sent smoke across parts of the South Hill as it burned the old Studio K Bar near the intersection of 29th and Regal Street. No firefighters were injured in the response, fire officials said.

It took nearly 100 firefighters and about eight hours to get the fire under control. Older construction and heavy concrete prevented firefighters from gaining access to the inside of the building, where flames were still smoldering.

“None of us have been able to get into the building. It’s too unstable,” Spokane Fire Department Assistant Chief Brian Schaeffer said late Wednesday morning.

Because the building was in danger of collapse, firefighters had to wait until about 10 a.m., when heavy equipment crews arrived on scene to demolish the structure. Dozens of firefighters remained on scene into the afternoon, spraying water on the charred remains of the building.

Crews from the Spokane Valley Fire Department and Spokane County Fire District 8 assisted in putting out the fire.

The building, owned by Spokane developer Harlan Douglass, was set to be demolished before the fire, Schaeffer said. Neighbors said the building had been vacant for several years since Studio K moved to a new location south on Regal Street.

Schaeffer said as far as firefighters know, the vacant building’s utilities were shut off. That means it’s unlikely the fire was caused by faulty electrical wiring. Fire investigators will work over the next few days to determine a cause.

There was some damage to an adjoining building to the east that shares a basement with the vacant complex, Schaeffer said.

The fire threatened the neighboring Maggie’s South Hill Grill, but firefighters were able to keep flames from spreading.

Cory Ehrgott, the owner of the restaurant, said Maggie’s has been closed for renovations since he bought the business in January.

“We were just like a week out from opening up,” he said. With smoke and water damage from the fire, that opening will be pushed back several months.

The building where the fire started is a total loss, Schaeffer said.

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