Four apartment units damaged in fire Tuesday night
A four-unit and two-alarm apartment fire brought dozens of firefighting and police vehicles to Forest Grove's eastern border Tuesday night.
"East bound Pacific Avenue is closed and being diverted onto Yew Street," Forest Grove Fire & Rescue said in a social media post.
The Eagle Crest Apartments, close to Prime Time, were on fire.
Information was limited on-scene around 9:45 p.m., but the fire was largely out, with crews working on hot spots.
Forest Grove Fire & Rescue Public Information Officer Matt Johnston said one person was being evaluated for smoke inhalation, the only injury reported at the time.
Four units on the left side of a two-story apartment building were heavily damaged, Johnston said.
Johnston said police came out in full force due to a string of recent suspicious fires in Forest Grove, but that it didn't appear this fire was suspicious, Johnston said.
News in the Grove has reached out to the Forest Grove Police Department for further information.
They stayed on-scene because they were blocked in by firefighting apparatus, Johnston said. Members of the Washington County Sheriff's Office could be seen directing traffic and blocking the road, while at one point, crime scene tape was stretched across a driveaway near the apartments.
Photos: Chas Hundley
Neighbors and residents were out in force to watch what quickly became a busy scene. A major road was closed, a Washington County Sheriff's Office drone flew overhead, a Hillsboro Fire & Rescue ladder truck, extended over the apartment featured a chainsaw-wielding firefighter.
"That's what they call vertical ventilation," Johnson said,
Describing an explosion, nearby resident Eric Boreson said his first thought was that a car had crashed in the neighborhood.
"And I heard this BOOM," he said. "And I thought 'oh, it's a wreck in front of the trailer court or something,'" he added.
Asked about reports of an explosion, Johnston noted there were propane tanks for barbecuing nearby.
"I'm not surprised if that's what it is," he said.
Forest Grove Fire & Rescue, Banks Fire District, Hillsboro Fire & Rescue, Gaston Fire Department, Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue, Forest Grove Police, Washington County Sheriff's Office deputies, and AMR were among those on scene.
The cause of the fire is unknown at this time.
This is a developing story; more information will be published as it becomes available.
