Woman files $10M claim against Seattle Housing Authority

Helen Gebregiorgis, whose three children were killed in a June 2010 fire that broke out in a closet of their Fremont apartment, has filed a $10 million claim against the Seattle Housing Authority.

Joseph Gebregiorgis, 13; Nisreen Shamam, 6, and Yaseen Shamam, 5, died in the fire. Also killed were Helen's sister, Eyerusalem Gebregiorgis, 22, and Nyella Smith, the 7-year-old niece of Eyerusalem and Helen.

The fire broke out in a downstairs closet where a foam mattress was left leaning against an exposed light bulb. Helen Gebregiorgis apparently tried to clear smoke from the house by opening windows and doors downstairs and upstairs. According to the Seattle Fire Department, the flow of air fed the smoldering blaze, which erupted.

The air flow funneled the fire up a stairwell. Helen Gebregiorgis managed to flee the burning home with her niece, Samarah, but the others barricaded themselves in a windowless upstairs bathroom; that's where their bodies were found.

The King County Medical Examiner's Office concluded the deaths were accidental and that all five victims died from a combination of carbon-monoxide poisoning, smoke inhalation and extensive burns.

Earlier this month, lawyers for Helen Gebregiorgis filed a claim for damages, the precursor to a lawsuit, against the Seattle Housing Authority, which owns the apartment. The 33-year-old woman claims she "suffered severe psychological trauma caused by her presence at the fire scene and the loss of her children and relatives," according to the filing.

According to the claim, "Seattle Housing Authority owned the premises and had installed lighting in the closet that was a ceiling fixture from which a bare light bulb was suspended. The on/off switch for the light was inside the closet. The fixture did not include any type of protective cover over the light bulb. The mattress came in contact with the light bulb and ignited."

Kathy Goater, Helen Gebregiorgis' lawyer, wrote in the filing dated July 7 that they are seeking no less than $10 million in damages.

The Housing Authority is also named in a secondary claim from Abdelrahman Shamam, 34, who identifies himself in a filing as the father of Nisreen and Yaseen, who perished in the blaze. While Shamam was not in the apartment when the fire broke out he "continues to grieve to this day," according to the claim.

Shamam is seeking $4 million in damages from the Seattle Housing Authority, the filing said.

Virginia Felton, spokeswoman for the Seattle Housing Authority, wrote in an email to The Times on Thursday that "we continue to grieve the tragic loss of these children, but we are unable to comment further about the claim."

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com