MARYSVILLE — A two-alarm fire engulfed a portion of the former Welco Lumber mill along Ebey Slough in Marysville on Friday evening.
Neighbors reported hearing a loud explosion at the vacant yellow sawmill building about 8:15 p.m., said Marysville Assistant Fire Chief Martin McFalls.
But that might have been the building’s roof collapsing during the fire, said bystander Jeff Zingmark, 49, of Arlington. Zingmark had been on the freeway when he saw the initial flames and pulled off to call 911.
The blaze was mostly extinguished within a half-hour, McFalls said. A large column of smoke was visible some distance from the mill, which is located at First Street and Beach Avenue adjacent to the I-5’s span over Ebey Slough. The towering brown smoke cloud drifted south over Everett minutes after the fire began.
While no injuries were reported, McFalls said the city has had problems with transients and squatters breaking into the vacant building in the past. Small fires have been reported there previously.
Marysville Mayor Dennis Kendall said the lumber mill ceased operations a few years ago and its owners had auctioned off the sawmill equipment. The mill made fencing and other cedar products, he said.
Fire departments from Marysville, Tulalip Bay, Everett, Getchell and Lake Stevens responded, but all but Marysville and Tulalip Bay were soon released from the scene, McFalls said.
Snohomish County Public Utility District crews also were on the scene to make sure electrical wires in the area weren’t damaged.
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