After six months, SDOT crews cleared site damaged by brush fire
Left: Site of East Marginal Way fire in January 2025. Right: Same site during July 9 fire. (Photos courtesy of SDOT and SFD Fire Line)
Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) crews recently cleared wreckage from a fast-moving summer brush fire along East Marginal Way in Georgetown.
The July 9 fire occurred near the split with the First Avenue Bridge, north of Michigan Avenue and across East Marginal Way from the Prologis warehouse. The fire quickly spread across dry grass and leapt to utility poles, parked trucks and other vehicles parked along the road. Smoke filled the area and fire crews shut down the road for hours while they extinguished the blaze, creating a traffic mess for evening rush-hour commuters.
For six months, the metal skeletons of burned-out tractor trailers and camper vans sat rusting on the side of East Marginal Way, a major entry point into the neighborhood for many.
In mid-January, SDOT Press Secretary Ethan Bergerson confirmed via email that crews removed the wreckage and repaired a large pothole. He said the clean-up was delayed because the property owner asked to salvage items. Then, SDOT hired an environmental contractor to use “specialized environmental remediation techniques” that SDOT crew could not perform. But he later added that the environmental contractor’s inspection did not detect any hazardous materials.
The site could be used for storing equipment and materials in the future, Bergerson said.
Comments