Briquette fire damages apartment building

ALYSEN BOSTON, Evergreen news editor

Pullman’s fourth fire in a week damaged the walls of a Clarke Terrace Apartment building Sunday morning.

Around 10:30 a.m., firefighters responded to a report of a fire under a deck, according to a Pullman Fire Department news release. The resident tried to extinguish the flames with a fire extinguisher, but the siding of the unit and the wooden deck were still smoking when firefighters arrived. Firefighters extinguished the fire after cutting through the siding.

Deputy Fire Marshal Tony Nuttman said month-old, pebble-sized charcoal briquettes caused the blaze.

“They were the only thing that was in the area of origin,” Nuttman said. “That was the only thing I could come up with. There was no electrical, there was nothing else that was there in that area of origin.”

Nuttman said briquettes could lie dormant for weeks. The resident told Nuttman he had not used his barbeque for a month, according to the news release.

Nuttman urged residents to properly dispose of briquettes.

“If you use briquette barbeques, briquette charcoal, please take them and put them in water in a metal basin and put them away from anything that’s combustible,” Nuttman said.

Nuttman estimated the fire caused around $3,000 in damage to the building, however all residents could return to their units. There were no injuries.

Nuttman also reminded residents to be aware of flammable cotton fluff throughout the summer.