Jodi Laverell, left, and Riverside Fire Authority Chief Jim Walkowski look at the structural damage to Laverell's property from a fire that began at the adjacent apartment building Tuesday morning in Chehalis. Laverell, who lives in Chehalis, said she bought the house in 2002 and lived there for nine years with her daughter, Katie. "I was shocked when (Katie) first called and said she thought the house would catch on fire," said Laverell. "I'm just glad she made it out alive." Walkowski believes there were 10 people were displaced due to the early morning blaze.
Jodi Laverell watches as Riverside Fire Authority Chief Jim Walkowski carries out dresser drawers filled with clothes as they attempt to salvage whatever they can from the fire that damaged Laverell's property on Tuesday morning. The fire, which started at the apartment building adjacent to Laverell's home, damaged much of the home, but Walkowski believes that because the home so well built it might be able to saved.
Riverside Fire Authority Chief Jim Walkowski and home owner Jodi Laverell looks through belongings that survived from Tuesday morning's structure later that afternoon on NW West Street in Chehalis. Laverell, who was leasing the property to her daughter, came by to see what could be salvaged from the blaze which started on the property adjacent to hers. "I just look at (the house) and can just see all the memories," said Laverell, who bought the house in 2002 and lived in the three bedroom home with her daughter for nine years.
Riverside Fire Authority Chief Jim Walkowski holds up caution tape as Jodi Laverell walks underneath it after watching Walkowski go through the house in an attempt to salvage Laverell's daughters belongings Tuesday afternoon in Chehalis. Laverell, who has owned the three-bedroom house since 2002, now rents it to her daughter.
Ted Huestis, a clean-up worker for 1-800-Board-Up, assess some of the fire damage done to a small apartment complex Tuesday afternoon on NW West Street in Chehalis. A fire that started early Tuesday morning gutted the multi-unit building displacing eight people. According to Riverside Fire Authority Chief Jim Walkowski, one person was brought to Providence Centralia Hospital for smoke inhalation.
Workers from 1-800-Board-Up patch up holes in a small apartment building that caught fire early Tuesday morning on NW West Street in Chehalis.
Damage from a structure fire on NW West Street is seen on July 18 in Chehalis.
Fire damage to the west side of the top floor of an small apartment building on the corner NW West Street and Rhode Island Place is seen Tuesday afternoon in Chehalis.
Jodi Laverell looks through her daughters belongings in front of the property she owns that caught fire when an adjacent apartment building caught fire Tuesday morning in Chehalis. Laverell, who has owned the home since 2002, was leasing the house to her daughter.
Plastic and aluminum fencing that separates Jodi Laverell's property with the apartment building east of her home is warped due to the heat of the fire that damage both structures early Tuesday morning in Chehalis.
Fire investigators are still looking into the cause of the fire that destroyed an apartment building as well as the adjacent one-and-a-half story house early Tuesday morning.
While authorities have already started the investigation, it could be a few days before crews can enter the building to continue it, said Riverside Fire Authority Chief Jim Walkowski, who is also the acting chief of the Chehalis Fire Department.
The chief said there are several rumors about what could have caused the blaze, but he declined to speculate.
He said officials are waiting for an engineer to examine the remains of the complex and determine what needs to be done structurally before investigators can enter.
The fire destroyed the apartment complex, a two-story building on the corner of Northwest Rhode Island Place and Northwest West Street, located a block from the train tracks in downtown Chehalis, and severely damaged the house to the west of the apartments. The roofs of both buildings partially collapsed.
The chief said he believes seven or eight adults living in the complex and two in the house were displaced by the blaze.
The initial 911 caller was an occupant of the apartment building who called at 4:40 a.m. Tuesday, Walkowski said. By the time crews arrived, the apartment complex was fully engulfed in flames and the fire had already jumped to the adjacent house about 20 feet away.
It does not appear there were any working smoke detectors in the apartment complex, and all occupants either woke up by chance or by a neighbor pounding on the doors, Walkowski said.
Ben Turner, from the Chehalis branch of the American Red Cross, said personnel from the agency arrived at about 7 a.m. Tuesday to meet with the people who lived at the buildings.
Two adults will be staying with relatives who live nearby, Turner said. The other families are now homeless and the Red Cross will give them temporary housing.
“We will be providing continual support as they get resettled,” Turner said.
Currently, the displaced families are staying at a local motel, he said. The Red Cross will make referrals to help them find permanent housing.
Anyone interested in donating money to the families should contact the local chapter of the American Red Cross at (360) 748-4607.
For those who want to donate specific items to the families should check out the Facebook group “Friends Helping Friends of Lewis County.”
Forty-seven firefighters from 11 different departments responded to the Tuesday morning blaze, from as far south as Toledo and as far north as Olympia. It took firefighters a few hours to fully extinguish the flames.
Walkowski estimated that at the height of the firefighting effort, crews were pouring 4,500 gallons of water a minute on the structures.
In June, fire crews from Chehalis and Riverside began training with one another on almost a daily basis. The joint training acted as a major step toward the possible consolidation of the two agencies.
Walkowski, who is also the acting chief of the city of Chehalis while elected officials continue to examine the possibility of permanently merging the agencies, said due to the combined training, managing the fire went significantly smoother than it would have a year ago.
“We are already seeing benefits from training together,” he said. “It was greatly helpful for this incident. This was much smoother than what it would have been from the past.”
Due to the low staffing of fire departments, several agencies respond when there is a major fire.
On Tuesday, the responding agencies included the city of Chehalis, Riverside Fire Authority, West Thurston Fire Authority, Lewis County Fire District 6, Napavine, Winlock, Toledo, McLane Black Lake, Thurston County Fire Districts 6 and 9, as well as the city of Olympia.
Walkowski said the response was equivalent of the firefighting force during the Dr. Matz building blaze in downtown Centralia in February 2012.
