LIBERTY LAKE, Wash – Firefighters say improperly discarded smoking materials sparked a fire that displaced more than 20 people from their condos in Liberty Lake.
Spokane Valley Fire and Rescue says 10 units of the Villas at Big Trout Lodge Condominiums are now uninhabitable.
The fire started around 11:15 Thursday night. By the time firefighters arrived less than 10 minutes later, significant fire was visible. They had the fire knocked down by 12:14 am.
Firefighters determined the fire started on a first-floor patio, then spread into the structure and the attic.
The fire department ruled the fire’s cause to be accidental, caused by improperly discarded smoking material.
Zaiden Johnson, 14, was just falling asleep when the emergency unfolded. “I heard a bunch of like loud alarms and I looked outside,” Johnson said. “I thought it was just like a false alarm or like a car but I looked outside and I saw a bunch of smoke and I saw like glowing from the flame, so, that’s how I knew I needed to get out of there.”
Jennifer Choquette, a mother of two who lived in a unit just a few hundred feet from the destroyed condos, described the overwhelming nature of the evacuation. “You think it’s never going to happen to you, I know everyone says that but I truly thought I had a plan in my mind and was someone that could stay calm and know what to grab,” Choquette said. “In the moment, you’re so overwhelmed by adrenaline and fear and safety for my children that I didn’t, I couldn’t. I would suggest people thought that through and had a list.”
Assistant Fire Marshal Jeremy Kish emphasized the importance of properly disposing of smoking materials. “Make sure that everything is out, even if you have to put it in water and just be responsible,” Kish said.
Fire officials also warned residents to never discard cigarettes into dry grass or potted plants, cautioning that fires like this one continue to occur when smoking materials are not handled safely.
The Red Cross is helping 22 people displaced by the fire.
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