In October 2020, Renton firefighters used flashlights as they walked through the vacant building — formerly a Denny’s establishment.

Curtains divided the interior into various areas with mattresses, blankets, furniture.

Renton police cleared the building of approximately a half-dozen homeless individuals prior to the entrance of the firefighters.

Reportedly, the individuals living in the building replaced the locks to the entrances for access, said Anjela Barton, fire marshal at the Renton Regional Fire Authority.

Firefighters searched for cooking appliances and flammable liquids and found none. Crews found extensive needles and drug paraphernalia throughout the interior and exterior of the building.

The environment presented potential firefighter safety concerns, Barton said.

Representatives of the Renton Regional Fire Authority expressed concerns regarding fire hazards related to encampments at the City of Renton’s Sept. 18 public safety committee meeting. The fire authority has partnered with the city to work with property owners to secure or demolish vacant properties.

In another incident in June 2023, a fire in an abandoned downtown building resulted from individuals moving into the vacant building, resulting in an estimated $100,000 in damages.

Barton said Renton firefighters have seen an increase in fires in vacant buildings, with tenants stripping material from beams and walls.

“Those are obviously concerning to us because a lot of tenants are usually using part of the structural components of the building for warming fires,” Barton said. “Those particular instances create significant concern for us, not just for the community, but also firefighter safety.”

The removal of materials from the buildings affects the structural integrity of the buildings, Barton said.

“When our firefighters respond to those fires, we want to make sure that they’re not going into an unsafe condition because things have been altered,” Barton said.

Barton also expressed fire concerns regarding outdoor encampments.

The Renton Regional Fire Authority tied a number of wildland fires in the Royal Hills area in the summer of 2023 to encampment fires that spread through dry grass, Barton said.

Dry weather resulting in dry vegetation is a concern in summer months, Barton said.

“It doesn’t take much for those fires to get started and then you get a little bit of wind (and) they can spread pretty quickly,” Barton said.

Barton recommended people living in areas with wildland urban interface to practice defensible space, keeping open grass and vegetation mowed and cleared, and discouraging the accumulation of flammable materials outside.

“Some of those common sense practices in keeping the property cleaned up … will make you less likely to be a victim of a fire that gets out of hand and grows,” Barton said.