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‘THE WEDDING SINGER’ | The Renton Civic Theatre Summer Teen Musical opens Aug. 1 [13]
FRIDAY, JULY 25, 2014
Renton River Days | The annual weekend-long celebration kicks off today and culminates in the annual Rubber Ducky Derby on Sunday. We’ve got the run down for you inside! [3]
Renton woman set husband on fire because shooting would be ‘too nice’ BY DEAN A. RADFORD dradford@rentonreporter.com
Fire investigators search through the rubble at Regency Woods on Monday looking for a cause of Saturday’s fire. Multiple buildings were burned for a total of $3 million in damage. TRACEY COMPTON, Renton Reporter Below, a firefighter sprays water on the blaze. PHOTO COURTESY DENIS LAW
Investigators still searching for cause of Saturday blaze that displaced 40 Starting Over
Damage to the Regency Woods apartment complex from Saturday’s four-alarm fire has been estimated at $3 million, according to Renton Deputy Fire Chief Erik Wallgren. Midweek, the fire investigation was continuing, including to determine its cause. The investigation is complicated by the size of the fire and the number of interviews investigators must do, Wallgren said. Thirty-nine residents were displaced from their homes but nearly all found temporary housing immediately with friends or family. No injuries were reported in the wind-whipped fire that was reported at 1:46 p.m. At the peak approximately 140 fire
A Renton couple is starting over from zero after the fire burned their home. See Page 15.
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personnel from Renton, Kent, Seattle, Bellevue and departments from as far as Snohomish and Pierce counties were on the scene. Off-duty firefighters backfilled Renton’s fire stations to ensure the entire city had fire coverage, Wallgren said. Winds, estimated at 20 to 30 mph, were a “major contributing factor” in fighting the fire, Wallgren said. Such winds are unusual for this time of year, he said. There was “significant potential”
Your Residential Specialists
[ more CHARGES page 8 ]
The boys are back in town! the winds could spread the fire to other apartment buildings at Regency Woods and apartment complexes in the area, he said. Embers ignited fires in dry grass and trees, including in the right of way that carries the BPA powerlines. Renton’s brush truck and such [ more FIRE page 14 ]
The Seattle Seahawks, including Richard Sherman, right, open training camp today, July 25, at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center in Renton. Check out our annual Seahawks special section beginning after page 8 for a preview of the upcoming season and what to expect at camp!
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BY DEAN A. RADFORD dradford@rentonreporter.com
A 40-year-old Renton woman told investigators she poured gasoline on her husband and lit him on fire because shooting him would be too nice, according to court documents. Tatanysha Marie Hedman of Renton was charged Tuesday with first-degree assault for the alleged assault on Vincent E. Phillips, 52, on July 16. She’s being held in the King County Jail in downtown Seattle on $500,000 bail. Her arraignment is Aug. 5 at the Norm Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. According to charging docuTatanysha Hedman ments, Hedman poured gasoline on Phillips, including his head and upper chest, while he was in bed. She then lit him on fire. He screamed and Hedman fled the bedroom and out of the apartment. Phillips followed her, his head on fire. A friend staying at the apartment likened the scene to one from the movie “Ghostriders,” where an actor’s head was on fire. Phillips fell to the couch, melting the fabric. The visitor threw a blanket over him to put out the flames. Phillips screamed, but didn’t say anything. He put on some clothes and left the apartment at 2101 S.W. Sunset Boulevard. He drove a Saturn registered to Hedman to the 7-11 store at 12848 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, where he asked a clerk to call for medical help. According to