Des Moines Space heater causes fire, smoke harm to apartment

May 1--Firefighters quickly put out an early evening apartment fire at 22405 30th Ave. S. However, smoke damage left the apartment uninhabitable.

The Red Cross assisted the occupant with temporary housing.

Fire investigators determined the cause was a space heater placed too close to the wall, which caught on fire.

There were no working smoke detectors in the apartment.

No other apartments were damaged and there were no injuries. Damage was estimated at $5,000, mostly due to significant smoke damage.

The fire department issued a reminder to those who use space heaters to keep them 3 feet from anything that can burn and to turn them off when they leave the room

North Highline Memorial fund set up for burn victim's family

May 7- A memorial fund has been established to help the family of Scotty Bruhn.

The 14-year-old North Highline boy died at Harborview Medical Center on May 5 from burns caused by a gasoline explosion while he and two friends were lighting a fire in the back yard of his Top Hat neighborhood home.

The fund has been opened at the White Center branch of U.S. Bank, 9800 15th Ave. S.W., Seattle 98106 (phone 206-767-6313).

A donation may be made at any U.S. Bank branch.

The fund will help defray expenses for Scotty's mother, Shannon Eastman.

SeaTac

Alleged car thief flees lot, tries to swim from cops

May 10-A woman jumped into Lake Washington to escape Port of Seattle police after she allegedly drove a stolen car through a tollgate at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport parking garage.

According to Port police, the woman followed a paying motorist so closely that she was able to leave the lot around 5:30 a.m. before the tollgate arm lowered.

But the private car in front of her was driven by a Port police officer who called the department for help.

Officers pursuing the 1992 Honda Civic ran a check of the car's license plates and discovered that it had been reported stolen in the city of SeaTac.

The chase led them north of Interstate 405 to a dead-end street in Bellevue near Lake Washington, where the woman left the car, waded into the water and started swimming.

A neighbor let officers use his boat to pluck her out of the water. She was arrested on multiple charges and booked into the King County Jail.

Tukwila

Passenger killed on I-5 when semi tires strike van

May 11-A 31-year-old Bothell man was killed when a loose dual wheel with tires smashed into the van he was riding in on Interstate 5 north of I-405 near the Duwamish curve.

Washington State Trooper Jeff Merrill said the tires came off of a northbound tractor-trailer, bounced over the median and struck the windshield of the southbound van.

The victim was killed instantly. The driver was not seriously injured.

Merrill told KOMO TV that semi dual wheels weigh several hundred pounds and, combined with the velocity, have "the ability to do tremendous damage."

Troopers stopped a semi north of the accident scene. Investigators were trying to determine what caused the wheels to come loose, which they said is a rare occurrence.

3-alarm blaze destroys car repair and tire shop

May 11-A three-alarm fire in a car repair and tire shop was battled by about 70 firefighters from eight South King County fire departments before it was put out.

The building, occupied by Far West Tire & Auto Service on South 150th Street one block west of International Boulevard, was a complete loss, according to the Tukwila Fire Department.

Firefighters fought the fire from the outside, pouring thousands of gallons of water on the flames that were fueled by vehicles, tires, gasoline, oil and other flammable materials inside the shop.

An adjacent gift shop also was destroyed.

Damage was estimated at $1 million. No one working inside at the time of the fire and no firefighters were injured.

Battalion Fire Chief Marty Grisham said the blaze was reported at 8:09 a.m. and was out by 11:15 a.m. Thick black smoke was visible for miles and forced nearby traffic to a halt.

Compiled by Ralph Nichols