An early-morning fire tore through a West End apartment building in Tacoma on Friday, killing one person and forcing residents out of their homes, according to fire officials. Crews arrived to find heavy smoke and flames near the intersection of North Pearl Street and North 11th Street and evacuated the building while they battled the blaze. The victim’s name has not yet been released, and investigators are still working to determine what sparked the deadly fire.
Fire response and investigation
Tacoma Fire Department crews responded in the early hours of Friday and immediately began attacking the flames and clearing people from the building, as reported by KING 5. Investigators were called to the scene to search for the origin of the blaze, and officials have not released additional information about the person who died.
Firefighters searched affected units and kept the surrounding area closed while they checked for lingering hazards and worked to ensure the building and nearby streets were safe to reopen.
Neighborhood context
The fatal fire comes on the heels of a string of overnight blazes in central Tacoma that has left many neighbors uneasy. In March, Hoodline covered a trash fire at an apartment door that ended with a pre-dawn arson arrest after a pile of burning refuse was found pressed against an apartment entrance. Authorities have not indicated whether that earlier case has any connection to the April 3 incident in the West End.
Tacoma Fire investigators and local law enforcement will continue to examine the scene and follow up on leads, and officials say they will release more details as they become available, per KING 5. The Pierce County Medical Examiner will confirm the victim’s identity and determine the official cause of death after an examination…