4-Alarm Warehouse Fire In Seattle

Flames, Black Smoke Shoot Into Sky

The building was in flames Thursday evening when fire crews arrived so about 75 firefighters fought the blaze from the outside, protecting a six-story building to the north and a two-story building to the south, Seattle Fire Department spokeswoman Helen Fitzpatrick said.

WAREHOUSE FIREImages: Flames Leap From Building

The fire was burning at a Utility Inc. facility, she said.

The company reportedly makes display cases and fixtures for retail stores.

"I'm crushed. I spent 10 hours a day here and now it's gone," employee Brad Humphrey told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

The company has about 32 employees, 18 of whom worked at the warehouse, said Humphrey, who is Utility's production coordinator.

The two-store concrete warehouse, with a basement, had wooden floors and ceilings and lots of wood inside, Fitzpatrick said.

The company's project manager, Jeff Hutt, was working in the building when the fire began.

"I went up to see what was going on and next thing I know, there's black smoke billowing out," Hutt told The Seattle Times. "Air was sucking into the building, howling. I couldn't open the front door and all of a sudden it flew open with a whooshing sound, and I flew out with it. I thought I was going to die."

No injuries were reported. There was no immediate word on damages or the cause of the fire. Fitzpatrick said fire investigators likely would not be able to enter the building until Friday.

Police closed off several nearby streets while firefighters worked on the blaze at Dexter and John.