Building destroyed by Olympia fire, one of several in region

OLYMPIA — Fire crews in Olympia responded to a large downtown commercial blaze early Wednesday that damaged five buildings.

The blaze was one of several overnight in the Puget Sound region.

The Olympia fire started around 5 a.m. at a five-story building under construction. The building was a residential project. Kevin Bossard, assistant chief of operations with the Olympia Fire Department, told The Olympian the building is a total loss.

Among the other buildings nearby that were damaged were Pete Lea’s Automotive Medical Center and August Creative, a web design consultant.

Bossard said the damage is at least $1 million, which means the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will assist the investigation into the origin and cause of the fire.

The Tukwila Fire Department responded to five suspicious fires that broke out near several businesses. The blazes were extinguished and nobody was injured.

“Obviously suspicious,” Tukwila FD PIO Jack Waller told KOMO “We’ve got King County investigators, Tukwila fire investigator and Puget Sound fire investigator en route to help.”

A commercial fire also broke out Wednesday in Lakewood and smaller fires were reported north of downtown Seattle in a three-story building under construction and home’s garage. No injuries were reported.