EVERETT, WA – Three residents were critically injured with burns and smoke inhalation this morning at an early morning house fire in the 3400 block of Broadway. Firefighters rescued two from the home, one who was in a wheelchair, and a third occupant self-evacuated from the home. Two residents were transported to Harborview Medical Center, and one was transported to Providence Regional Medical Center.
Just before 4:15 a.m., 911 received multiple calls about a house fire. An initial caller reported a mattress fire in the home, while other callers reported a house fire with flames showing. Firefighters arrived to find a working house fire with one victim in the front yard and a report of another occupant, who was in a wheelchair, still in the house. Crews were able to rescue the subject in the wheelchair and located an additional (third) victim who was still in the house. Firefighters performed CPR on one of the victims at the scene, who was then transported to the hospital. All victims are in critical condition.
Shortly after the first unit arrived, the fire was upgraded to a second alarm with an MCI (multiple casualty incident). Fire crews worked for approximately 70 minutes to fully extinguish the fire. More than 50 firefighters and 20 apparatus responded to this incident, with mutual aid from Marysville Fire District, Snohomish Regional Fire and Rescue, Snohomish County Fire District 4, and South Fire and Rescue.
Everett Police assisted with traffic control. Broadway in both directions was closed for several hours.
The cause and origin of the fire are under investigation by the Everett Fire Marshal’s Office; however, preliminary information leads investigators to believe a space heater near a mattress may have started the fire.
Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fire deaths. Everett Fire would like to remind the community to keep a few simple safety tips and precautions in mind to help prevent heating fires from happening.
- Place space heaters on a solid, flat surface.
- Keep anything that can burn, like bedding, clothing, and curtains, at least 3 feet away from your heater.
- Make sure your heater has an automatic shutoff, so if it tips over, it shuts off.
- Plug space heaters directly into wall outlets, don’t use an extension cord or power strip.
- Turn space heater off when leaving the room or going to bed.
- Make sure the smoke detectors in the home are working.
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