FEDERAL WAY, Wash. — A huge fire in Federal Way destroyed a house Monday morning. It’s the same house where an 85-year-old woman is accused of shooting and killing one of her roommates less than two weeks ago.
Neighbors say they woke up to sounds of loud pops and thought there was another shooting at the home. Turns out it was ammunition in the garage exploding.
South King Fire and Rescue said at least for now, investigators are not calling the fire suspicious.
A lieutenant said one challenge was the size of the blaze.
“There were flames pouring out of almost every window and door opening inside the house,” said Lt. Brad Chaney of South King Fire and Rescue.
Chaney also said there was a lot of stuff inside the home.
“The more stuff you have, the larger your fire is going to be and the hotter it's going to burn. So that did present a challenge. Then of course being able to make access into the house – it’s even more of a challenge,” he said.
It's the same home in Federal Way where police say an 85-year-old woman shot both of her roommates on Dec. 19, killing one of them.
The women were two sisters in their 30s. Janet Oyuga, 32, died on scene. Her sister, Angela Atieno, was shot in the back but survived.
Neighbors were shocked Monday to wake up to another incident -- this time a fire that kept crews at the scene for hours.
“Crazy, just crazy,” said Kathy Wilson, who lives one street away.
Wilson said she knew the murder suspect, Beverly Jenne.
“She seemed like a very sweet, kind, loving person. I visited with her several times a year and we exchanged Christmas goodies every year,” Wilson said.
She said she heard about Jenne's trouble with the home.
Court documents say the house was foreclosed, then sold at auction.
“She was under a lot of pressure because she thought she was going to be evicted from the house. She hadn't made her payments for a while. I just felt bad for her. But you never know what somebody's going to do,” Wilson said.
The two sisters were letting the older woman stay while she got her affairs in order.
“They were trying to be kind it sounds like, and let her live there. Very tragic all around,” Wilson said.
Fire investigators are still looking into how the fire started but said there is no reason to believe it’s connected to the murder at this point.
Investigators with the King County Sheriff’s Office were back at the scene Tuesday with an arson dog from the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. No accelerate was detected by the dog and the cause of the fire remains undetermined so far, the Sheriff’s Office said.
There is a GoFundMe for Oyuga to help send her body back home to family in Kenya, and to help her sister with medical bills from her treatment after being shot. at the home for 40 years.
Crews are now making access to the attic for full extinguishment before making entry. pic.twitter.com/qYARy4Hvyx
— South King Fire (@Southkingfire) December 30, 2019
© 2019 Cox Media Group
