Fire investigators have ruled out arson as a possible cause for a fire that forced the evacuation of a downtown Yakima apartment building.
The Yakima Fire Department investigation found that the Oct. 28 fire’s origin cannot be determined, the department shared Thursday in a news release.
Officials said the fire apparently started on or near a bed in a third-floor apartment, but there was no evidence that the fire was deliberately set. A man going to get a haircut at a barber on the building’s first floor spotted smoke coming from a third-floor window around 3:50 p.m. Oct. 28 and called 911 before going upstairs to alert residents, according to a fire department news release.
Firefighters were able to confine the fire to the apartment, but smoke damage and insulation that was released from the attic led city officials to declare the building unfit to live in until repairs are made.