VIDEO: Fire officials released a report Tuesday confirming that June’s Upriver Fire began in a vacant home, but noted that the exact cause remains “undetermined.” An investigation by Spokane County Fire District 9 and the Washington Department of Natural Resources found that the fire originated at a home along North Upriver Bend Lane before spreading to other structures and nearby wildland.
Property owner Robert Dubrasik told investigators the house had been vacant since 1996, though he repaired its roof in 2024 and regularly paid for electricity. Officials say they were “unable to determine an ignition source,” but pointed to an electrical failure and a potential break-in as “possible hypotheses.” “While the owner kept the main breaker switch off, we found [the] breaker panel with the breaker in the ‘on’ position,” the report read.
Investigators also said the fire “could have been started by someone (homeless or recreationalist) who broke into the house.” The property is located near several homeless encampments, and investigators say recreationalists start campfires that are “poorly” or “never” extinguished and eventually abandoned.
“We were not able to recover enough data from the scene to prove a human start,” investigators added. “However, fire damage may have destroyed such evidence, so we cannot disprove those hypotheses either.”
The report also confirmed that west-southwest winds drove the fire, which burned 212 acres.
KTVB-TV NBC 7 Boise
The post New report confirms Upriver Fire began in vacant home, though cause is ‘undetermined’ appeared first on Daily Dispatch.