Brush fire near South 216th Street slows I-5 southbound traffic

For the Reporter

Traffic came to a halt late Wednesday afternoon along Interstate 5 southbound near South 216th Street in the Des Moines/SeaTac area because of burning brush and trees just west of the freeway.

Vehicles backed up starting near the I-405 interchange in Tukwila near the Southcenter Mall around 5 p.m. as firefighters contained and doused the fire.

Area crews were dispatched at 4:21 p.m. after Department of Transportation cameras spotted it. As the fire moved up the hillside on the west side of the freeway, it began to approach homes, an apartment complex and several large water towers.

Fire crews from the Kent Regional Fire Authority and other departments worked quickly to fight the fire both along the freeway and above to protect the homes and property at the top of the hill. No homes were damaged, though the dry grass around the water towers was burned, officials reported.

Access to the fire was hampered by chain link fences protecting the DOT right of way and the water department. The potentially affected homes were in the city of SeaTac.

Because of the amount of water used on the fire and the number of old cigarette butts along the freeway, it is unlikely that a cause for the fire will be discovered. If anyone witnessed anything that will help investigators determine a cause, they are asked to call 911 with that information.

A total of eight fire engines, including a crash truck from Boeing, three chief officers, a wildland firefighting crew and an investigator were used at this incident, totaling over thirty personnel.