Nguyen Thanh, one of the two monks who lived in the house, said they didn't spend the night in their building because they smelled a natural gas odor last night, so they shut the power off and slept in another building. Thanh said he now thinks the odor was a burning smell.

VIDEO BACKSTORY: Monk Escapes Fire

Over five hours later, firefighters were at the scene after receiving a call that there was a structure fire.

Crews arrived to find flames burning in the basement and on the main floor.

The fire destroyed the building. Nothing inside could be salvaged.

Damage is estimated at $100,000.

Investigators discovered that the fire had been slowly burning for hours.

One firefighter suffered a minor injury when he twisted his ankle in the dark. He was transported to Harborview Medical Center.

No one else was injured.