Crime & Safety

Fire at Bassetti Crooked Arbor Tuesday Destroys Outbuilding

Firefighters had apparently put out an initial blaze, but had to be called back to the scene. Cause is believed to be accidental.

 

A Cottage Lake area fire Tuesday evening destroyed an outbuilding at , after fire crews had to be called to the scene twice.

Fire crews first battled the blaze at 18512 NE 165th St. at about 4:45 p.m., responding to a call that a 15-foot-by-30-foot workshop was on fire. Three Woodinville Fire & Rescue engines and 12 firefighters responded to the call, needing to lay about 1,600 feet of 5-inch diameter fire hose from a street hydrant to the fire. Crews also used firefighting foam to put out the fire, according to David Weed, community services officer for the district.

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It took about 20 minutes to put out the initial fire and another 40 minutes to make sure there were no hot spots. Before firefighters left, they used two thermal cameras (which use infrared waves to detect heat) to make sure the fire was out, Weed said. At that point the scene was turned over to a King County Sheriff’s fire investigator to determine the cause of the blaze. According to an initial report, the fire is believed to be accidental and most likely caused by an electrical ignition source, according to Interim Fire Chief Mark Chubb.

At about 8 p.m., the fire district was called back out to the Bassetti property because the building was engulfed in flames. “We were shocked when the call came in,” Weed said. “When we got there we could see the roof sagging. At that point we felt it was unsafe to enter the building and had to put the hoses through doors and windows to fight it.”

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It took firefighters about an hour to put out the second fire, he added. Leanette Basseti, owner of the property, told firefighters that she and her father, Leno Bassett, had built the workshop together when she was a little girl, according to Weed. Longtime Woodinville resident at the age of 97.

Woodinville Fire & Rescue is reviewing the possibility that the second fire resulted when fire debris from the first incident rekindled.

“Obviously, we take significant precautions to ensure every fire we fight is completely extinguished before we leave the scene,” said Chubb. “But we have to balance these efforts with the need to preserve evidence for subsequent investigation and to minimize damage to other exposed property that might result from these efforts.”

Chubb said the fire district has commissioned an internal review of the procedures and practices associated with the fire. “We assume that every incident we attend is an opportunity to do better, and this case is no exception.”

Findings of the internal review will be presented to the fire chief within 30 days and reviewed by the district’s fire commissioners.


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