Early morning fires destroy house, car

Published 10:40 pm Monday, July 14, 2008

LYNNWOOD — Two fires Monday morning in Lynnwood caused a total of $530,000 damage, destroyed a house and a Mercedes-Benz, and injured one person.

About 1 a.m., crews rushed to a home fire near 200th Street SW and 56th Avenue W., Lynnwood Fire Department spokeswoman Marybeth O’Leary said.

The fire started in the garage and the two people who lived in the home were able to escape, O’Leary said. One person was treated at the scene for minor burns to the hand. The other person was taken to the hospital for a checkup on a pre-existing medical problem.

“The roof entirely burned off the house,” O’Leary said.

Firefighters arrived to find the home engulfed in flames. They fought the blaze defensively and battled to protect neighboring property. Some surrounding homes received minor damage, O’Leary said.

Typically when people are home and a fire is spotted, crews can be alerted and arrive in time to extinguish the blaze before too much damage is done.

“Something was in there that burned really hot or really fast,” O’Leary said. “That’s why the house was a total loss even though there were people home.”

The fire destroyed the home, which was valued at $450,000. The blaze appears to be accidental and investigators are trying to determine what sparked it.

A second fire in Lynnwood is being investigated as arson, O’Leary said.

About 3:25 a.m., someone called 911 to report a fire in the 6800 block of 212 Street SW, she said.

An $80,000 2008 Mercedes-Benz, owned by Enterprise Rent-A-Car, was on fire.

Investigators believe someone broke the rear windows and lit the inside of car. Lynnwood police are investigating.

“It appears someone held a lighter under the headliner,” she said. “Car fires don’t usually start in the headliner.”

Reporter Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437 or jholtz@heraldnet.com.