Yellow Pages
ANACORTES — A containment boom was set up to catch debris that fell from a burning railroad trestle into the water along the Tommy Thompson Parkway as firefighters worked to put out the smoldering structure that spans Fidalgo Bay.
More than 200 feet of the Tommy Thompson trestle over the bay was burning, Anacortes Fire Department Assistant Chief Dan Harju said this afternoon.
The state Department of Ecology set up a containment boom on loan from the Port of Anacortes in an effort to contain debris and contaminates that could get into the water because of the creosote wood preservative that coats the pilings.
The blaze was burning roughly 250 to 300 feet from the rock causeway of the Thompson Parkway.
Firefighters don’t know yet how the blaze started, Lt. Jack Kennedy with the Anacortes Fire Department, who is acting as the incident commander. He nor Harju would speculate on a cause. Firefighters won’t know where the fire started until after the fire is extinguished and officials conduct an investigation.
Fire hoses were stretched across the top of the causeway from the east side by March’s Point Road to the fire, and two fireboats sprayed water on the burning section of the trestle. During the afternoon, at least 20 firefighters at a time were tackling the blaze from both the east and west sides.
Kennedy said when they arrived, the pilings underneath the trestle were burning.
“We had accessibility issues and water supply issues,” Kennedy said.
Agencies on the scene included the Anacortes Fire Department, Summit Park and Hope Island from District 13, Swinomish Police Department, the Red Cross, and the County Department of Emergency Management. Both the Shell and Tesoro refineries are assisting. By late afternoon, fireboats on the bay were still pouring water on the smoldering trestle. Burned debris that floated away before the boom was set up could be seen in the water near shore.
Jonn Lunsford with the Anacortes Parks and Recreation Department said the city would be blocking off both ends of the trestle with fencing so no one can go on it.
“We’re mourning right now,” Lunsford said.
There have been no fires on the trestle since it was restored about three years ago. But fires were reported about 10 years ago when people barbecuing dumped hot ashes on it.
* Anacortes American reporter Kimberly Jacobson and Skagit Valley Herald reporter Marta Murvosh provided this report.
Read more local news in the Skagit Valley Herald and the Anacortes American, or read it online in the E-edition
