Redmond Apartment Complex Fire

This past weekend, in the early hours of New Year’s Day, a fatal fire in a Redmond Apartment complex killed a father and four children. The fire, at Sammamish Ridge Apartments on Redmond Way, apparently began around 2:30 in the morning after New Year’s celebrations had ended and the children were put to bed. Lily Reasor, the mother of three of the children and step-mother of one, escaped the blaze and was held back by fire fighters from re-entering the building. Although the cause of the fire is under investigation, police are considering the possibility that the fire was accidental caused by smoldering ashes. A witness told police that Reasor had been flicking her ashes into a bathroom garbage can earlier in the night. The building had smoke detectors which were working, according to surrounding residents, yet the complex did not have a sprinkler system installed. Sprinkler systems were not required when the building was built. We offer our condolences to the victims’ families in this tragic accident.