Cause unclear in series of brush fires in Marysville that closed I-5

Published 5:20 pm Tuesday, August 1, 2023

MARYSVILLE — After multiple brush fires along I-5 in Marysville closed lanes during rush hour Tuesday night, the cause remained unclear Wednesday, fire officials said.

At least a dozen fire trucks — engines, tenders, aid units and command vehicles — initially responded around 4:45 p.m., amid reports that as many as six fires threatened industrial buildings along Smokey Point Boulevard. Ultimately, over 100 firefighters responded to the scenes.

Around 5 p.m., traffic cameras showed heavy smoke and flames at separate fires in dry grass right along the freeway, near the exits to 144th and 156th streets NE.

The burned area quickly spread to roughly 16 acres due to high winds, Marysville Fire District spokesperson Christie Veley said Tuesday.

Neighbors reportedly assisted the firefighters with garden hoses and buckets of water to protect the threatened businesses. After about three hours, the City of Marysville reported the fires had been contained. The largest was reported to be about 8 acres.

Meanwhile, traffic backed up as long as 7 miles, according to the state Department of Transportation. Drivers were isolated to one lane for hours.

Northbound lanes closed for about 15 minutes at the height of the fires, and for hours, traffic crawled through the scene. At least one fire was moving south along the north lane. Train tracks in the area were still shut down into the evening.

Firefighters requested a “strike team” to help battle the flames. State troopers and the state Department of Natural Resources responded. DNR deployed three engines and two air units, agency spokesperson Thomas Kyle-Milward said.

Smokey Point Boulevard, between 136th and 156th streets NE, was also shut down, said Connie Mennie, city spokesperson for Marysville. Mennie said it was “very” smoky in town and some businesses had to close.

Around 10 p.m., the fires were out, Veley said. Just after 10:30 p.m., all lanes opened. Crews flagged the burnt area for potential hotspots and continued to monitor them overnight. Two spots flared up around 6 a.m., but firefighters extinguished the flames quickly.

No injuries were reported, Veley said. Three buildings sustained “minor” damage from the fires, with costs reportedly totaling less that $10,000.

UPDATE: ALL LANES NB I-5 IN #MARYSVILLE ARE BLOCKED.

NB I-5 at 136th St NE is blocked for a large brush fire.
Fire, Incident Response and State Patrol are at the scene.

AVOID the area and USE alternate routes. Traffic backup is approx 5 miles. Unknown ETA for opening the road. pic.twitter.com/R19QhOyMCa

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) August 2, 2023