Losses in Renton fire estimated at $11 million

Fire investigators on Wednesday were trying to determine whether contractors working on the roof may have sparked the massive blaze that a day earlier destroyed an apartment building under construction.

"We have talked with the roofers, and they were up on the roof working with a torch [Tuesday], " Renton Deputy Fire Chief Bill Flora said. "But we can't rule out anything until we're absolutely sure that it's not the cause."

Fire officials estimated losses at $11 million and said the fire — which shot flames more than 50 feet into the air and drew more than 80 firefighters from a dozen cities — is among the largest in Renton in recent memory.

"We're still compiling any additional damage estimates from the surrounding neighborhood area," Flora said later Wednesday.

Along with the 107-unit south tower of the Harrington Square Apartments — the upscale complex under construction — the fire also destroyed a small office building next door that housed a property-management firm. The complex's 110-unit north tower escaped damage, the project's general contractor said.

"We're completely devastated," said Reed Kelley, president of DRK Development, the general contracting firm. "But I would like to say the firefighting team did a phenomenal job."

Once the investigation is done, Kelley said, his firm plans to rebuild.

On Wednesday, with the smell of smoke still hanging in the air for blocks, dozens of curious onlookers milled about the still-smoldering ruins along Harrington Avenue Northeast, gawking and snapping photographs.

"It was so hot out here, it almost felt like your skin was melting," one woman said.

Meanwhile, firefighters used ladders and hoses to send streams of water into the hot spots and douse flare-ups amid the twisting pile of rubble in the Renton Highlands neighborhood.

"We still have a lot of hot spots, so we haven't been able to get in there yet," Flora said.

The blackened shell of what had been a five-story apartment/retail building had been more than halfway finished when the fire erupted near the roof area about 8 p.m., Flora said.

Construction workers at the apartment/retail project site had been using a propane-fueled torch on the roof while applying roofing material, Flora said.

The roofers, along with the rest of the construction crew, had left the site for the day at about 4:30 p.m., he said.

Investigators also are trying to determine whether other possible causes, including fireworks, may have started the fire, Flora said. Authorities had received no reports in the area of fireworks, which are banned in the city, he said. The only potential fire cause that has been ruled out is electrical malfunction, Flora added.

Although he said investigators had interviewed several subcontractors who had been working the project, Kelley declined to comment about what may have caused the fire.

"We're not going to speculate and [will] wait for the [investigators'] report," he said.

Although no one was injured in the blaze, a police officer directing traffic nearby was struck by a car after it was hit by a pickup driven by a suspected drunken driver. The officer ended up on the pickup's hood and was carried about 100 feet. The officer then fell off the pickup and rolled in front of another car, officials said.

The officer, who has been with Renton police for a year, was later treated at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle and released, a police official said.

Police quickly arrested the 29-year-old man who was driving the truck for investigation of reckless driving and driving under the influence.

Seattle Times staff reporter Charles E. Brown contributed

to this report.

Lewis Kamb: 206-464-2341 or lkamb@seattletimes.com