One dead in RV fire at Bellingham homeless encampment
One person died in a pre-dawn fire that destroyed one RV and seriously damaged another in a Lettered Streets encampment where several homeless people were living, police said Friday, May 7.
Firefighters were sent to an RV on fire on D Street between Astor and DuPont streets at 4:02 a.m., Police Lt. Claudia Murphy told The Bellingham Herald.
Firefighters found a body in one of the RVs, Murphy said.
“At approximately 4:13 a.m., (the Fire Department) requested the assistance of (police) as a deceased person was found inside one of the RV’s while firefighters were working to douse the fire,” she said.
At least two RVs and a van with a trailer have been parked in that area of D Street on the hill above the fish hatchery at Maritime Heritage Park, and several tents have been pitched in an adjacent vacant lot.
Murphy said police officers interviewed witnessed as firefighters put the fire out.
“A person living near the RVs spotted the flames initially, knocked on RV doors to get the attention of any occupants, and woke another person to call 911,” Murphy said.
Information about the fire victim was being withheld until identification is made and relatives are notified, Murphy said.
The origin and cause of the fire was unknown, pending the investigation.
According to the emergency services app Pulse Point, Bellingham Fire sent three engine companies, a ladder truck, a battalion chief, a medical services officer and a paramedic ambulance crew.
This story was originally published May 7, 2021 at 8:30 AM.
