A man being treated for burns told investigators he woke up surrounded by fire, according to a probable cause affidavit.
SNOHOMISH, Wash. — Snohomish County fire investigators believe. trestle fire The fire near Harvey Airport, which destroyed about 300 feet of railroad structure and burned one person, was intentionally set, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The Snohomish County Fire Department believes the burned man is responsible for the fire. KING 5 News is not releasing the man’s name until he is formally charged.
Snohomish County Fire District 4 was first called to reports of a brush fire near Airport Road around 5:19 a.m. on May 12.
The response escalated after crews saw heavy smoke and received reports of a burning railroad trestle.
According to testimony, people reported trees on fire behind Hangar 420 and black smoke coming from the railroad tracks.
When firefighters arrived, they found thick smoke billowing and the railway trestle completely engulfed in flames. The fire also spread to nearby trees and vegetation.
About 50 firefighters fought the blaze from the air from two locations using four fire engines, hand ropes and ladder trucks. Fire officials said access to the area was difficult because there are no roads in the area.
Crews had the fire under control around 6:30 a.m.
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Deputies found the man crawling along the tracks with burns on his hands and feet, according to the affidavit. He told investigators he had been camping in the area and woke up surrounded by fire and had no idea how the fire started.
A deputy fire marshal wrote that investigators found two separate areas where the fire appeared to have started. The fires were not related to each other but started along different parts of the trestle, the affidavit said.
Investigators also found burned clothing and debris near one of the heavily damaged areas, the affidavit said. The deputy fire marshal classified the fire as incendiary and wrote that damage and burning patterns were consistent with the use of a hand-held open flame.
Fire officials said the trestle was difficult to extinguish because of the way the wood was handled.
“They’re soaked in what we call creosote, which is a petroleum that has a lot of chemicals in it,” said Snohomish Fire Protection District Chief Don Waller. “So they burn very violently and burn up a lot of dangerous smoke. They’re often difficult to put out because we can’t get under and around them.”
