Man Rescued in Capitol Lake

Above: A man who jumped into the choppy, cold waters of Capitol Lake was rescued by Olympia firefighters on Friday afternoon.

By Janine Gates

Little Hollywood

https://janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

A man who jumped into the choppy, cold waters of Capitol Lake at Heritage Park was safely rescued by Olympia firefighters and police officers on Friday afternoon.

During the tense time before an official rescue was launched, police officers patrolled the border of Capitol Lake asking bystanders to not jump in the water to save him, saying the water was cold and the man may resist being rescued. Police officers suspected that he may be mentally ill or under the influence of drugs.

Bystanders expressed concern for the man. One man approached police officers to express his opinion that all the police cars, with lights flashing, may deter the man from swimming to shore on his own.

Above: Bystanders kept an eye on the man before a rescue was launched by Olympia firefighters, who reached him by boat.

The man jumped into the lake from the north shore of Heritage Park and swam to the middle of the lake when the fire department launched a motorboat from Marathon Park.The man consistently kept his head above water. 

When the three firefighters reached the man, they flung a rope out to him. The man grabbed onto the rope and hung onto the side of the boat as it moved at low speed toward the shore.

Above: Olympia police officers were ready to assist Olympia firefighters when they came ashore with the man.

Once reaching shore, police officers were prepared with yellow emergency blankets to cover the man, who only wore a torn black t-shirt. His right eye was injured. The man was rambling as firefighters brought him out of the water. 

He was put on a gurney and transported to the hospital.

Above: Firefighters and police officers assisted in the rescue of a man at Capitol Lake on Friday afternoon.

Editor’s Note: Little Hollywood arrived on the scene shortly after the man jumped into Capitol Lake and is choosing not to publish pictures of the man because he was in crisis. Instead, the focus of this photo essay is on the efforts of Olympia firefighters and police officers who assisted in the rescue effort. 

Two-Alarm Fire in Downtown Olympia Destroys Warehouse

Above: City of Olympia deputy fire chief Greg Wright was still on site early Tuesday morning at 227 Adams Street in downtown Olympia after a two alarm fire destroyed the one and a half story, rectangle shaped, wooden building, which was built around 1920. Wright said the cause of the fire was still undetermined.

By Janine Gates

www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

A building at 227 Adams Street in downtown Olympia was already heavily involved in fire by the time firefighters arrived within three minutes from the call to dispatch at 1:14 a.m. Tuesday morning, said City of Olympia deputy fire chief Greg Wright in a press release.

Aided with units from Lacey, Tumwater, and Thurston County, there were approximately 35 firefighters at any one time working on the fire. The main fire was out after about 90 minutes and there were no reported injuries to firefighters.

In what could have been a far worse situation, the area between the fire building and the adjacent structure, an alley, was filled with new and used propane tanks and a propane delivery truck. Those tanks were kept cool and remained undamaged. The building is owned by Acme Fuel Company. 

Above: Evidence will be analyzed for a possible cause of the fire. The structure was a total loss, including two fuel oil delivery trucks and two other trucks inside at the time of the fire.  A tea wholesale business and a wood shop in the building were also destroyed. Preliminary damage estimates are $350,000 for the building and $500,000 for the contents. 

The building was built in 1920, according to the Thurston Regional Planning Council historic property inventory database, and did not have a fire alarm system or fire sprinklers. 

Above: Washington State Department of Ecology spill response employees lower absorbent booms down a storm drain early Tuesday morning near the corner of Thurston and Adams Streets in downtown Olympia. 

Heavy run off from the fire covered several streets and briefly blocked access to the downtown Intercity Transit bus facility, but as drains were cleared by Olympia Public Works, the water receded. An undetermined amount of runoff from the fire went into nearby Puget Sound. Ecology is also in touch with the building owners about products stored in the building.

Family Shelter Residents OK After Morning Fire

Above: Kids and adults, many of them barefoot, waited for firefighters to arrive at the Family Support shelter on 7th Avenue in Olympia this morning.

By Janine Unsoeld

www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

Earlier this morning, shortly after 10:00 a.m., Olympia firefighters responded to a report of a fire at the Family Support shelter called Pear Blossom Place, located at 837 7th Ave SE.

The shelter, formerly the city-leased Smith Building, is across from the old city hall and opened in June 2014.

After the alarm went off, residents and onsite staff came streaming out of the building and waited outside for over two hours. Many children were barefoot and without coats, including a mother and her baby, who was clad only in a onesie. The weather was relatively mild, but became cool at times. Some held onto their dogs, and one woman held her 17 year old cat safe and cozy in a backpack.

Olympia and Lacey Fire Dist. 3 crews arrived to find the fire controlled by the buildings automatic sprinkler system. According to a fire department press release, firefighters ensured the fire did not extend beyond the apartment and evaluated two patients, one for a minor burn injury and the second for smoke inhalation. Both patients refused further aid and were released at the scene. No other injuries were reported.

Above: Firefighters arrive at Pear Blossom Place.

 

The Olympia Fire Department responded with four engines, one ladder truck, two medic units, and a command unit.  Lacey Fire District 3 also responded and assisted by covering additional emergency responses within Olympia.  One minor firefighter injury was reported and was expected to be seen at Providence Saint Peter’s Hospital for a minor laceration.

The Olympia Fire Department remained on scene to assist the residents, remove smoke, water, and investigate the fire.  The American Red Cross was contacted to assist the families.  At this time the cause of the fire appears to be accidental.  Total fire loss is expected to be $20,000.

Schelli Slaughter, executive director of the Family Support Center, arrived onsite soon after the firefighters to assist and determine individual needs. She said about 15 families and 60 individuals total are currently living at the shelter, which provides housing for local homeless families with children. She said some units were perfectly fine, others will take more work, and that two units were most affected.

A company that deals with water damage was seen onsite late this afternoon.

For more information about Pear Blossom Place, and how you can volunteer or help the shelter, go to the Family Support Center of Sound Sound at www.fscss.org.

Above: Kids are excited to receive stickers from firefighters while they waited until they could get back inside the building.