Fire crews have responded to 11 fires in the area of the Shadow Hawk and Royal Hills apartments in Renton since June, causing concern for residents.
Fire crews have responded to 11 fires in the area of the Shadow Hawk and Royal Hills apartments in Renton since June, causing concern for residents who had a close call with the most recent blaze to break out.
The new numbers come after a juvenile was suspected of starting a brush fire behind the Royal Hills apartment complex during peak fire season.
Renton Regional Fire Authority and Puget Sound Regional Fire Authority responded to the brush fire near the 3000 block of Royal Hills Drive Southeast around 5:30 p.m. Monday.
Video from the scene showed firefighters working behind the apartment complex as flames burned underneath transmission lines. Crews were able to knock down the fire and prevent it from spreading to the complex.
"It's coming like fast towards our complex and the trees are starting to catch on fire. The bushes are all catching on fire," said Aya, who chose to not share her last name, "All I could think of is just like whether or not like our house was going to get on fire because it's right behind it," she added.
The teenager said she's lived in the Royal Hills apartment complex for 10 years, and has never seen anywhere close to this many fires in one summer.
“All summer, people have just been setting fires, to be honest, and it's been consistent," Aya explained, noting that in years past it would typically be one or two fires near the Fourth of July holiday.
Fire officials have since provided KOMO News with a broader accounting of the fires in the area, saying crews have responded to 11 fires near the Shadow Hawk and Royal Hills apartments since June.
Of those, two were considered recreational fires associated with encampments in the area. Four had undetermined causes, and three appeared to be related to fireworks. Two of the fireworks-related incidents involved juveniles.
One of the 11 fires was intentionally set, according to fire officials, who referred questions about the suspect in that fire to the Renton Police Department.
Renton police previously said officers have responded to five calls to assist the fire department in the Royal Hills area since the beginning of the year. Two other calls were canceled by the fire department because police assistance was no longer needed.
In connection with Monday's fire, Renton police said the apartment complex manager reported seeing a boy running from the area of the fire and was able to identify him.
“Officers contacted the family and developed probable cause for Reckless Burning in the Second Degree,” police said in a statement. “Charges have been referred to the city prosecutor's office.”
Other residents expressed their concerns about the fires, especially after their parents were in a unit close to the August 17 fire, similar to Aya.
“If the fire gets close up to these apartments, they're all wooden. They're going to catch fire so quick," said Andrey, a resident at Royal Hills, who also chose to not share his last name.
Both he and Aya stated with certainty they suspected that there is a group of children who live in the complex who are behind some of the fires this summer.
"I think these little kids are just out here with free will playing with these lighters," Aya said.
The two also reiterated their desire to see camera or two posted in the field area, to deter the mischievous activities. They pointed to the claim that a camera was stationed in the area by the fire department this past Fourth of July for a few days, which proved to be effective.
“As soon as that camera was gone, that's when that's when next day when a fire broke out right in the back of my apartment," said Andrey, who says he has put out a few smaller fires himself after he's spotted them from his balcony.
KOMO News has reached out to spokespeople for the Renton Fire Department and Renton Police Department for questions about the stationed camera, and if either agency would consider bringing one back to the area permanently, along with claims about children being tied to fires.
A police spokesperson was unable to answer questions at the moment, while we were still awaiting a response from the fire department by the update of this article on Wednesday night.
While no apartment units have burned in the fires around the Royal Hills area, regional fire officials say any new fires could spread quickly because of the dry vegetation.
“What we found this year is fire season actually started about a month sooner than it typically has in the past. It's starting earlier. Listening to the National Weather Service, it sounds like it's going to end later. The fire season itself is expanding in western Washington,” said Pat Pawlak with the Puget Sound Regional Fire Authority.
