A large, two story home caught fire in the 1400 block of SW Miller Creek Road in Normandy Park late Friday night (Jan. 20), and was extinguished around 3:15 a.m. by the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department along with help from North Highline, SeaTac and South King Fire.

“The call came in at about 9:30 p.m.,” said spokesman Doug Leudeman. “It was a fireplace-chimney fire that spread into the attic and burned off about 1/3 of the roof with about 300k damage. The folks living there are going to be displaced for a while. Our crews were on the scene until about 3 am and there were no injuries to the residents or the firefighters.”

The first fire engine to arrive (from the Normandy Road station), reported heavy fire involvement of the attic and second story of a large, two-story residence.

Santa John Nielsen follows volunteers to the next delivery during last year

The Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department is seeking donations for their annual “Light Up The Holidays” outreach program for needy families in the area.

Donations of food or toys are being accepted at both the Burien Fire Station (15100 8th Ave SW) and North Highline Fire Station (1243 SW 112th & 1606 S 128th) through Monday, Dec. 19th.

There are also donation barrels located around the area, so look for those as well.

The deadline to give is Monday, Dec. 19th, and all donations will go directly to needy families in the area.

We’re covered this great program before, and here’s a snippet from last year’s story by Michael Brunk:

Organized by firefighter Lt. John Zilke, the fire department works with local businesses and the community to gather food, gifts and cash donations in the months leading up to Christmas. Names of needy families are provided by the Department of Social and Health Services.

The ultimate goal? To make sure that each family on the list has a complete turkey dinner with all the trimmings and gifts for the children in the family.

Here’s a selection of photos I shot throughout the day set to a little holiday music. It’s a pale imitation compared to actually participating in an experience like this, but I hope it contributes something to your own sense of the holiday spirit:

Click to Play the Slideshow

Story by Ralph Nichols
Photos by Scott Schaefer

King County Fire District 2 Commissioners, Chief Mike Marrs, firefighters with the Burien/Normandy Park Department, and local officials broke ground Wednesday (July 27) for new headquarters Station 28.

“This is an exciting occasion, especially for those who took the vision from concept to reality,” Marrs said.

But the new station, which will be built at 900 SW 146th Street, “would not be possible without the citizens of Burien and Normandy Park,” Marrs added. “We’re extremely grateful for their overwhelming support….

“We need to offer the highest service possible to the community,” and the new station will help the fire department do that, he said.

Voters in Fire District No. 2 approved in November 2008 a $25 million bond issue for construction of the new headquarters fire station, and for replacement of the existing station in Normandy Park.

The construction contract was signed earlier in the day Tuesday. Josh Ferrel, project manager for Bayley Construction of Mercer island, the general contractor, said work likely will get underway in late August or early September.

Completion of construction and occupancy of the new station is anticipated for late summer 2012, Marrs said.

Cameron Smock, president and CEO of Bonney-Watson, which for decades had a mortuary and chapel at that location until selling the property to Fire District 2, said the decision was difficult to make.

But they came to understand that just as Bonney-Watson had “a legacy of service to families, by celebrating lives” there, that service “could be continued to help save lives” by selling it to the fire district.

Burien has long needed a new fire station to replace the outdated and undersized existing facility at the corner of SW 151st St. and 8th Ave. S., Marrs said earlier. It will include space for the department’s ladder truck, which now must be parked away from downtown.

The Normandy Park fire station at 135 S. Normandy Road will be built at the current location. The fire district has acquired an adjacent residential property for the building site and the existing station will remain in operation when construction begins.

Marrs told The B-Town Blog that land-use plans for the Normandy Park station, which is in Burien, were submitted to city staff for review on July 26. Ironing out these details is taking longer because the station is adjacent to a residential area.

That project is expected to go out for bids at the beginning of the year, with completion anticipated at the end of 2012 or early 2013.

The bond issue included the costs of property acquisition and equipping the new stations.

Here are some photos of the event as taken by Publisher/Editor Scott Schaefer:

by Ralph Nichols

King County Fire District 2 Commissioners and Chief Mike Marrs are inviting the public to the groundbreaking for the new Burien/Normandy Park headquarters station on Wednesday, July 27.

The new Station 28 will be built at 900 SW 146th St. The “groundbreaking celebration” will begin at 5 p.m. and continue to 6:30.

Marrs said he expects the construction contact to be signed about Aug. 2, with work beginning just a few days later.

He told The B-Town Blog earlier that the new facility – at the long-time location of Bonney-Watson chapel and mortuary – should be completed and occupied in six to nine months.

Voters in the King County Fire District No. 2 approved in November 2008 a $25 million bond issue for construction of the new headquarters fire station and replacement of the existing station in Normandy Park.

The bond issue included the costs of property acquisition and equipping the new stations.

Burien has long needed a new fire station to replace the outdated and undersized existing facility at the corner of SW 151st St. and 8th Ave. S., Marrs noted. It will include space for the department’s ladder truck, which now must be parked away from downtown.

The Normandy Park fire station at 135 S. Normandy Road will be built at that location. The fire district has acquired an adjacent residential property for the building site and the existing station will remain in operation when construction begins.

“The Red Cross will be providing assistance which could include shelter, food, clothing and other immediate needs,” according to an email from Katherine Boury, Seattle Red Cross Media Relations Officer.

“It was a minor fire caused by bedding and mattress against a baseboard heater,” said Doug Luedeman of the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department. “The fire was contained in the bedroom and quickly extinguished by the fire department. There were no working smoke detectors in the home at the time. There was nobody home at the time of the fire and there were no injuries to fire personnel.”

“On average, the American Red Cross Serving King & Kitsap Counties responds to an emergency like this every other day. All Red Cross assistance is free. For more information about the Red Cross please go to www.seattleredcross.org.”

PREVIOUSLY: We encourage all our Readers to participate in our community news gathering efforts (you can email us tips & photos here), and here’s an example of one such submission from BTB Reader Desiree Gonzalez – a photo of a residential fire in a complex just north of SW 132nd and First Ave South in Burien at around Noon on Tuesday, July 12th:

Click image to see larger version.

We’ve inquired about this incident with the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department, and once we gather more info, we’ll update this post.

If you happen upon something newsworthy in the Burien area, please take a photo and email it to us: editor@b-townblog.com.

Please include your name, location of the event and any other info you can find, and pending review, we’ll likely post it.

Sounds good, huh?

Well, all was well and good until the engine caught fire, and according to an unidentified Burien/Normandy Park firefighter, “someone from the shore called the fire department, and here we all are.”

Three fire engines and a Medic One arrived at the scene Tuesday evening.

A few excited neighbors witnessed the boat and passengers coming to shore with no apparent injuries.

BTB Sales Diva Janet Grella lives on the beach and sent us the following photos:

by Ralph Nichols

Applications for permits for the new Burien/Normandy Park headquarters station are expected to go to city planners for review by late next week.

Fire Chief Mike Marrs told The B-Town Blog on Jan. 13 that while the permits are being issued, architects will continue working on construction and bid documents.

Marrs said the call for bids for construction of the new station, at 900 SW 146th St. – long the location of the Bonney-Watson chapel and mortuary, is expected to be issued sometime between late March and mid-April.

Construction should begin sometime between early May and early June and be completed “toward the end of the year,” he added. “It’s a six- to nine-month build.”

Voters in the Burien/Normandy Park Fire District (King County Fire District No. 2) approved in November 2008 a $25 million bond issue for construction of the new headquarters fire station and replacement of the existing station in Normandy Park.

The bond issue included the costs of property acquisition and equipping the new stations.

“There’s been no dollar change” in costs facing the district, Marrs said. “We’re still within budget. We’ll know where we are price-wise when we get the bids back but it looks like we’re on track.”

Burien has long needed a new fire station to replace the outdated and undersized existing facility at the corner of SW 151st St. and 8th Ave. S.

A top priority for the headquarters station was a downtown location for response times no more than seven minutes anywhere in the fire district, and for direct access to major arterials and State Route 509.

The Normandy Park fire station at 135 S. Normandy Road will be built at this location. The fire district has acquired an adjacent residential property for the building site and the existing station will remain in operation during construction.

Marrs said the department is just finishing the schematic design for this station, with work running “about two months behind.” Permitting is expected sometime in March with bids called for in May.

“I think we’ll catch up with it once we get to bids,” he said. “It’s a smaller building so construction will be shorter. We should be done with it around the end of the year too.”

Part of the reason it was a total loss may be because after initially hitting the flames with water from a tank, the fire truck could get no more, due to a malfunctioning fire hydrant.

Initial reports indicate the blaze may have been started by a heat lamp in the cage of a pet reptile.

According to KING-TV:

The home was fully engulfed by the time they (firefighters) arrived, but the flames weren’t the only problem. They ran out of water.

Firefighters immediately hit the fire with 500 gallons of water from their tanker, and then went to the nearest hydrant. But when they turned it on, it didn’t work.

Molly Kongslier’s family has owned the property for 103 years. She claims the cabin served as a ticket booth in 1962 to Seattle’s World Fair.

KING also says that on Wednesday (Nov. 10), crews from Water District 20 fixed the fire hydrant by 3pm.

We contacted Doug Leudeman, Battalion Chief for the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department, and this is what he said:

There was a hydrant issue at this fire.  When our crews arrived on scene they set up to use the hydrant closest to the house that was burning.  They dropped a “dry line” from the truck and drove to the fire.  They were going to use the 500 gallons they carry on board to do a quick knock down and fight the fire and have the next engine that arrived hooked up to the “dry line” to the hydrant. then open  up the hydrant and start the water flowing to the engine at the fire before the 500 gallons was used up.  This is a very common practice and it typically works very well allowing for continuous fire fighting from the time we arrive until the fire is out.  When the next engine arrived they hooked the supply line that was going to the truck at the burning house to the hydrant, when they went to open the hydrant the nut on the top turned freely and would not open the hydrant. At that point the crews went down the street about 300 feet and hooked up to the next one, successfully supplying water to the Engine that was fighting the fire.  As you would expect all this does take some time so there was a delay, but the engine at the fire was able to keep the fire from spreading to any neighboring structures with the 500 gallons they had on board. They did run out of water for a short time but they did get the supply established and finish extinguishing the fire as quickly as  possible.

Here’s KING-TV’s report:

[PHOTO CREDIT: Courtesy Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department]

The Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department will be hosting “Kids’ Day,” their annual open-house event on Saturday, Sept. 18th, from 10am – 3pm.

In addition to a full day of FREE, fun and informative events, there will also be low-cost helmets for anyone over the age of 1 for sale for just $7 by Safe Kids King County South. These will be custom fit by Highline Medical Center staff, and wearer must be present.

This is a great way to also meet your local firefighters, so mark your calendars now.

During the event, there will be a wide range of activities, including:

• Learn about safety
• Climb aboard a fire engine
• Play games
• Watch Demonstrations of emergency automobile extrication and high-angle rope rescue
• Practice escaping from a burning house (simulated)
• Spot the tot and hyperthermia (overheating) demonstrations from Safe Kids King County South
• Squirt a fire hose
• Answer questions for prizes
• Hunt for candy
• See a helicopter land
• Make crafts
• Bring your camera

Balloons, fire hats, and safety information will also be handed out.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Annual Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department Kids’ Day.

WHEN: 10am – 3pm on Saturday, Sept. 18th.

WHERE: Fire Station #28 located at 15100 8th Ave. S.W. Burien, WA 98166.

INFO: For more information call Station 28 at (206) 242-2040.

Future neighbors of a new headquarters fire station in Burien are invited to voice their their ideas, concerns and other comments at a meeting of the King County Fire District No. 2 commission at 5 p.m. Tuesday (May 4).

The meeting will be at the current headquarters station, located at 15100 8th Ave. SW.

Burien/Normandy Park Fire Chief Mike Marrs said, “We consider this a valuable opportunity to hear from our neighbors, resulting in a station design that exhibits both compatibility and a source of pride to the neighborhood.

Construction is expected to begin on the new facility later this year. It will be located at 900 SW 146th St., where a funeral chapel was located for many years.