Apparently a reporter for KIRO found out that Miklosh had lost his autographed guitar in the fire, so he called Gill’s “people” and arranged for a replacement, which arrived today.

Full story here, but note that KIRO erroneously claims that only two people were killed, when in actuality three were (Edgar Omar Cisneros Velazquez, his grandfather Ramon Cisneros Sanchez and Lindy Kunimoto).

And as of Aug. 26th, the arsonist still remains at large despite a $10,000 reward.

A refreshing phone call came in to the B-Town Blog offices from Burien fire victim David Baggott.

You may recall that David, along with his wife Elizabeth, are among the more than two dozen survivors of the fatal June 29th arson fire which destroyed the Tara and Jenny Marie apartment buildings on SW 155th Street in Burien.

Their roommate, Lindy Kunimoto, age 49, died in the fire. Two other people, tenants on the floor above them (including an 8-year old boy), also died tragically, and as of today, the arsonist still remains at large despite a $10,000 reward.

David is now back at work. He and Elizabeth have settled in to a new apartment near Highline High School.

“I just want to say how very much we appreciate all the help that everyone has provided,” David said. “We are overwhelmed with what the community has done for all of us.”

David says his parents, who lived with them at the Tara, are doing much better now, too.

David and Elizabeth, along with his parents and about a ten other survivors, attended the Fire Victim’s Fundraiser (co-sponsored by the B-Town Blog along with Discover Burien) held at Mick Kelly’s July 16th.

“We loved it,” he said. “Thank you very, very much to everyone for the turnout.”

The Fundraiser, featuring silent, live auctions and a 50/50 raffle, raised over $10,500, which went directly to a fire victims fund set up at Sterling Savings Bank.

David says he will stay in touch and keep B-Town Blog readers informed as to how life is going.

Meanwhile, David is a strong advocate for planning and rehearsing a fire drill in the home.

“Knowing exactly how you are going to get out in case of a fire is a very, very good thing to know.”

Former residents Jamie Cisneros and Martha Velazquez lost their 8-year-old son, Edgar Omar Cisneros Velazquez, in the June 29 arson, which also killed Cisneros’s father, Ramon Cisneros Sanchez. Resident Lindy Kunimoto, 49, was also killed.

Now the couple has sued building owners Eric and Ruth Johnson. contending that they failed to maintain required safety equipment or provide residents with adequate escape routes in case of fire. The Johnsons have yet to file a response in King County Superior Court, where the suit was filed July 8.

No specific allegations of wrongdoing were made in court filings.

Fire investigators determined the fire was caused by arson, and put out a $10,000 reward for the arsonist.

However, no arrests have yet been made.

SOURCE:

• Seattle P-I

Further info will be coming soon, so stay tuned to the B-Town Blog for exclusive information.

In the meantime, if you’d like to donate, look at the right sidebar of this page and you’ll see what appears to be a new “Ad,” but is actually a call to action for all our faithful and generous B-Town Blog Readers to donate to the American Red Cross’ “Burien Apartment Fire Fund.”

All donations will go directly to the victims of last weekend’s tragic fire that killed three, injured six and left dozens homeless.

Latest news developments:

• On Monday, the King County Sheriff’s Office declared that the fire that destroyed the eight-unit Tara Apartments and heavily damaged the identical Jenny Marie Apartments in the 400 block of Southwest 155th Street was arson. Investigators aren’t releasing what specifically led them to conclude it was arson, said sheriff’s spokesman John Urquhart.
• The fire is being investigated by King County Fire Investigators and the Major Crimes Unit of the Sheriff’s Office.
• A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest of whoever is responsible. Anyone with information about the arson should call the Sheriff’s Office immediately at (206) 296-3311.
• According to the Sheriff’s Office, the fire caused about $1.75 million in damage. But for many of those left homeless, the fire consumed belongings that will be difficult to calculate in dollar amounts.

If you’re interested in helping out (either with donations to the upcoming auction event or your assistance in helping get the word out), please email us ASAP.

Lots of generous B-Town Blog Readers have been asking how they can help the victims, and here’s what we recommend for now since relief efforts are still developing:

• Donate online directly to a “Burien Apartment Fire” fund courtesy the American Red Cross. The Red Cross website says:

“Help the Red Cross provide food, shelter and hope to the victims of the Burien Apartment fire. All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. By making a gift to this fund, your gift will be used to provide assistance to individuals and families affected by the fire. If you would prefer to make a gift to support the thousands of disasters the Red Cross responds to each year across the country, please select the National Disaster Relief Fund. If you wish to support disaster relief in our local community, please select the American Red Cross Serving King & Kitsap Counties Fund.”

• Donate by phone: With a credit card, you can make a secure Red Cross donation over the phone weekdays between 8:30am – 5:00pm by dialing (206) 323-2345.  Make sure and specify that the donation goes toward the “Burien Apartment Fire”.
• Donate by snail mail: Send a check or money order to the American Red Cross Serving King & Kitsap Counties with “Burien Apartment Fire” in the Memo Field and mail it to:

Seattle Red Cross
P.O. Box 3097
Seattle, WA 98114-3097

• As of today, here are local businesses that are accepting donated goods for the fire victims:
  • Sterling Savings Bank, located at 224 SW 152nd Street in downtown Burien is accepting and holding donations; contact number is (206) 243-6869
  • Collins Chiropractic, located at 619 SW 152nd in downtown Burien is accepting and holding donations; contact Lindsay at (206) 242-0998

NOTE: Until we gather more info on the victims, we recommend that our Readers either donate cash directly to the Red Cross, or purchase Gift Cards to local businesses and drop them off at either Sterling Savings or Collins Chiropractic.

Until we know specific needs and sizes we recommend NOT donating clothing yet – stick to either cash or Gift Cards for now.

If you own a business, or are a BTB Reader who wishes to help, please email us – our goal is to serve as the online resource for assisting our neighbors in need, and this effort is only just beginning.

Fire investigators have not determined a cause for the fire which destroyed the Tara Apartments at 455 SW 155th, and badly damaged the neighboring Jenny Maria Apartments at 429 SW 155th shortly after 12:30am Sunday.

Officials with the King County Sheriff’s Office have said the fire appears suspicious.

The Red Cross has set up a shelter at the Burien Presbyterian Church, where they are assisting dozens of tenants displaced by the fire .

The B-Town Blog is planning on doing both a physical and an online fundraising campaign to help the victims, so stay tuned.

If you’re a local business or resident interested in helping out, please send us an email.

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

We then went over to Lake Burien Presbyterian Church, where the Red Cross has set up a shelter for the 31 displaced people and talked with volunteers there. Out of respect for the families, we opted not to take photos, as the survivors gathered had just been informed of the three deaths (and several were related or very close to the victims).

It’s sad whenever a tragedy like this hits a community, and this one hit hard, as the following comment by an eyewitness posted on Craigslist attests to:

We were woken by sirens about 12:45 am. This is so incredibly sad. The entire complex was engulfed before fire fighters arrived. Three confirmed dead now (Go to KIRO’s website for pictures and story). One of whom is an 8 year old boy whom was a former classmate and friend of my daughter. His Grandfather also died and one other person. It also moved to the apartments next door and damaged 3/4 of that building as well. We could stand in our front parking lot..see and feel the flames….that close to us.

No one knows what happened yet. Fireworks? Electrical? (Loud bang could have even been the water tanks exploding. Even if it was due to someone being stupid, the loss of lives is horrendous. I saw a woman sobbing, and I was told by a man who knows them, that she is the mother of the young boy. So she lost 2 loved ones.

Please be kind no matter what the outcome is, and hold the familys close. Good thoughts, prayers, chanting, lighting candles….what ever you do.

Thank YOU “B-Town Blog” for the story I know you’ll do with excellence. I’m only sorry your stories aren’t all full of ‘strawberry festival’ happiness.

Thank you.

A very saddened neighbor who knew the child personally. (Telling my child she lost her friend was so damned hard to do.)

Rest assured that the B-Town Blog plans on doing whatever it can to help those in need, so stay tuned for some positive, uplifting events soon…

Neighbors said the dead included an 8-year-old boy and his grandfather, but officials would not confirm that.

Emergency officials confirmed that the three dead were found in two units, one above the other, in one of the apartment buildings.

Here’s two raw video clips of the fire we found today apparently taken by a neighbor from across the street:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Video from KING-TV is here.

If you have any photos or video of this tragedy, please email us at tips@b-townblog.com.

The fire, in the 400 block of SW 155th Street, was reported at about 12:45am Sunday morning.

“I heard an explosion and glass shattering,” said Lisa Johnson, who a resident of the apartment building. “So I automatically had my granddaughter with me and came out.”

“The streets were just filled with people running and screaming … and the apartment was in flames,” she said.

The first fire crews roared in, sirens wailing and horns blaring, to find a two-story apartment building with heavy fire and smoke pouring from the front of the building, said Dave Nelson, spokesman for King County Fire District 20.

The two-alarm blaze quickly escalated to a three-alarm fire when an adjacent apartment building’s roof caught fire, and more fire crews were needed to battle the spreading flames.

Kenneth Mason, who lives nearby, came running when he saw the crackling flames and that’s when he spotted five people, including a baby, trapped behind a jammed-shut glass door in the burning building.

Mason yelled at a woman in the trapped group.

“I said, ‘Get out! Get out! There’s a fire! There’s a fire!’ and she said, ‘We can’t get out!’ And my friend Sam grabbed a big old brick and went and busted the glass door,” he said.

“And they threw the baby out and gave me the baby, and the rest of the guys came out – and then the fire really got bad.”

Amid the mayhem, a teenage girl jumped from a second-story window in another part of the building, suffering injuries.

Ladder trucks from Tukwila and Renton were able to pour water from above while King County firefighters took a defensive position to stop the fire from spreading to two other buildings.

The first building was completely destroyed and the second building suffered major damage.

Six people were treated at area hospitals, including the girl who jumped from her window. Other injuries include burns and smoke inhalation.

As of Sunday morning, fire officials were still accounting for occupants of both buildings. Many people went with family and friends and to Highline Medical Center to be with family members who were injured.

No firefighters were injured battling the fire.

Firefighters from around South King County assisted in fighting the fire including Renton, Tukwila, Kent, Seatac, South King Fire and Rescue, North Highline, King County Medic One, King County Fire District 20, Seattle and King County Sheriff Fire Marshals Office.

The Seattle Chapter of the American Red Cross is assisting nearly 50 displaced people and sheltering them at a local school.

Firefighters will remain on scene to assist in the investigation.

At this time due to the building’s weakness fire investigators will have to wait until its safe to go inside the first building to determine the cause.

Damage estimates are not available at this time.

Stay tuned to the B-Town Blog for an online fundraising drive to help your neighbors in need.

SOURCE:

• KOMO News

View Larger Map

The post contrasts what the property owners espouse about the apartments in marketingspeak versus what an actual tenant thinks.

It is truly hilarious, and here’s an excerpt:

Surrounded by broken down cars on blocks and stunning views of the overflowing dumpsters, you are enticed inside by a tree-lined drive and welcomed into a charming neighborhood of cramped, military-style apartment homes…

If you’d like to LOL, go read the entire entry NOW.