fire

Tammy Town Councilmember Tammy Morales (@CMTammyMorales) continues to ignore the homeless encampment off Rainier Ave S and Plum St that’s spiraling out of control. As of Wednesday evening, I counted 15 tents and 13 vehicles on the grounds of the former Burger King and 7-11 that recently burned down. New people keep moving in. Drug use is rampant and there are signs this is turning into a chop shop for bicycles. At the same time, there are babies on the premises and kids playing catch. Overall, everyone is chill. But most homeless people here are rejecting the shelter options being offered. They want tiny homes, apartments, or an RV lot. This is the on-going narrative at a lot of these Read More ›

Ballard RV Torched Tuesday afternoon, flames erupted inside an RV parked right next to the abandoned Jack in the Box (@JackBox) on NW Leary Way. Not sure if there were any injuries. Unclear how it started. Ironically, the fast food restaurant was burned down just a few months ago by homeless squatters. This part of Councilmember Dan Strauss’ (@CMDanStrauss) district remains packed with tents and RV’s on nearly every block. How many more incidents until the city moves in? Seattle Department of Transportation (@seattledot) is playing whack a mole out here. Every 72 hours, the RV’s just move around and come right back. Is the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (@KingCoRHA) focused on Ballard? Back in March Homeless suspected of Read More ›

Fire Fire Fire Just making my rounds Wednesday afternoon in SODO when I spotted this character. Dude was wearing a blonde wig, torching a pile of plastic, and then threatened to kill me. “Blow your f****** head off N****. ” He started off by calling me the N-word but eventually corrected course and went with Jackie Chan. LOL. Just another day in #Seattle. This is your district Tammy Morales (@CMTammyMorales.) Hey, at least 3rd Ave & Holgate St. remains clear of RV’s. Gotta take the W’s when you can. @MayorofSeattle @GovInslee @kcexec @seattlecouncil @KCCouncil @CMSaraNelson @CMTMosqueda @KingCoRHA @DiscoveryCWP

Ballard Jack in the Box up in Flames Homeless suspected of burning down part of Ballard @jackbox on Leary Way NW early Wednesday morning. Restaurant remains closed today. I saw worried workers in the parking lot trying to figure out next steps. This location remains problematic and is surrounded by multiple RV and tent encampments. @CMDanStrauss needs to focus on this part of his hood. It’s been cleared multiple times. @MayorofSeattle @GovInslee @kcexec @SeattleFire @CMTMosqueda @D5Juarez @SeattleCouncil @seattledot@KCCouncil #Seattle How Long Will This Last? On Thursday, 8th Ave NW and 6th Ave NW were clear of RV’s. I have not seen it like this for quite some time. But it’s a game a musical chairs. @Seattledot is enforcing the 72 Read More ›

Massive Liability Tuesday morning, another INFERNO at the King Street #Chinatown-ID homeless encampment. This is the same @WSDOT property that’s now been the scene of nearly a dozen fires this month alone. In my over 20 year journalism career, I have never witnessed so many elected officials fail a community like this. Asian American immigrant business owners continue to be victimized. High school students at Summit Sierra are now walking home past this disaster. @KC_RHA CEO Marc Dones continues to offer no timeline on when it will be cleared. @CMTammyMorales being called out again for being MIA. Kim Nguyen owns Vuu’s Beauty School right next to this dangerous encampment. Nguyen is challenging Tammy Morales to show up for her CID Read More ›

Exclusive Tuesday evening, massive RV INFERNO in #Seattle‘s Wallingford neighborhood. Everyone got out safe. Owner of vehicle says he was trying to stay warm when propane tank exploded. @SeattleFire saved day. Neighbors came by w/blankets. RV’s Remain Liability There are multiple RV’s parked across street from Wallingford post office. Neighbors have complained to city for months with ZERO action. Not just about fire risks, but more crime linked to campers. More thefts+gas being siphoned from parked cars. Major Drain #Seattle Fire Dept. released latest list of encampment-related fires+medical responses for people experiencing homelessness for 2020, 2021 and 2022. All approximates. Volume spiking each year. Seattle’s First Encampment Fire of 2023 On Jan 3, no casualties or serious injuries at S. Read More ›

Seattle’s First Encampment Fire of 2023 No casualties or serious injuries at S. Lake Union camp. But this one near Space Needle has been cleared before. I’ve been tracking for months. City and outreach struggling to get in front of repeat situations. Exclusive Day after Christmas 2022, this one erupted at encampment off S. Rainier Ave/90E ramp on @WSDOT property. I tried to help. Campers in nearby tents were furious because it will now attract more scrutiny. Exclusive Back in October 2022, another fire at PROBLEMATIC homeless encampment on @WSDOT property in #Seattle‘s #Chinatown-ID. Inferno torched several tents. No injuries but biz owners are furious and want #WSDOT to SWEEP. Even Seattle PD Calling Out WSDOT I’ve obtained this email Read More ›

Squatter City #Seattle‘s Wallingford neighborhood has 5 houses on same street w/homeless people staying w/out permission. Many are breaking in from @WSDOT‘s Ship Canal Encampment. Once again @weheartseattle is back trying to help. Dropping FULL STORY this week. Following Up @KC_RHA says outreach workers are checking in on campers at @WSDOT‘s Ship Canal encampment. But right now, even the house squatters say @weheartseattle volunteers are only ones trying to help them find other options. Update Saturday morning, neighbors in Wallingford say SQUATTERS from @WSDOT‘s Ship Canal Bridge encampment started a fire inside a house on 5th Ave NE. Today, the squatters came back. But neighbors MOBILIZED and had a message for them. Now the house is boarded up. Saturday’s Fire Read More ›

Exclusive Another fire erupts at PROBLEMATIC homeless encampment on @WSDOT property in #Seattle‘s #Chinatown-ID. Inferno torched several tents. No injuries but biz owners are furious and want #WSDOT to SWEEP. Even @SeattlePD calling out state agency. Calling Out WSDOT I’ve obtained this email sent out by @SeattlePD to a concerned #Chinatown-ID community. Still waiting for @wsdot to respond to my questions. Bottom line, when will this encampment be cleared? It’s been on state highway property for months. Victimized Again Vuu’s Beauty School is taking the brunt of all the problems associated with this homeless encampment on @WSDOT property. Kim Nguyen owns the place and asks, when will @GovInslee start considering the needs of #Chinatown-ID businesses? No Response From WSDOT I Read More ›