Brush Fire Burns Roof Of Seattle Skyscraper

SEATTLE, WA - This isn't your typical brush fire. A garden on the rooftop of a notable downtown Seattle skyscraper caught fire Monday night. According to pictures from the incident, it appears that some tall grasses in the garden were a main part of the fire

The fire was reported just after 7 p.m. Monday at 1310 2nd Avenue, which is the address of the Russell Investments Center. The same block also contains the Seattle Art Museum. The main building itself, the sixth tallest in Seattle, is 42 stories, but the roof garden where the fire broke out is located on a shorter building in front of the main tower.

The Seattle fire department later said improperly discarded smoking materials likely caused the fire.

Downtown worker Nich Barry captured a video of the fire from an adjacent building.

There are several large brush fires raging in the Cascades east of Seattle. Those fires as recently as last week blanketed Seattle in ash, and smoke from the fires blotted out the sun and reduced air quality.

And while there have been a number of urban brush fires around Puget Sound this summer, this appears to be the largest seen in a rooftop garden.

Images courtesy Nich Barry, Google Maps, SDOT