‘Highly suspicious’ fires break out in Walla Walla
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A string of fires broke out in Walla Walla over the past few days. The city’s fire department has deemed them “highly suspicious.”
The first fire started late Sunday, along Highway 12 near Washington Park. The second fire occurred a few hours later, in an industrial lot about a half mile away. Soon afterwards, more fires were sparked at each location.
No one was injured. But several vehicles were burned, leading to an estimated property loss of $10,000 to $15,000.
Fred Hector, Walla Walla’s deputy fire chief, said each fire had multiple points of origin. That leads the department to believe the fires were set intentionally.
“Most of the time, if it’s a lightning strike or some natural thing, there’s one point of origin and it grows out from there,” Hector said.
This is not the first time that this has happened. Last June, several fires broke out in the same part of town. Sgt. Nick Loudermilk, of the Walla Walla Police Department, said this year’s bout of fires are “almost identical in nature and suspicion: the way they were lit, the time of year.”
While the police had a suspect in mind, they never gathered enough evidence to make an arrest.
“Unless you catch them red-handed, it can be kind of difficult to prove in court,” Loudermilk said. “Everything around it was adding up, but we just never made it to the finish line. And then the fires stopped.”
Both the police and fire departments are asking residents to report any unusual activity. They noted that fires can grow rapidly this time of year because the grass and brush are both extremely dry.
“Any type of careless behavior is going to lend itself to a pretty quick fire spread,” said Erik Swanson, a fire captain who responded to the calls. “We’re going to try and remain vigilant, and hopefully no one gets hurt.”
