Soap Lake school fire called suspicious

No electricity in abandoned building

SOAP LAKE - The Grant County Fire Marshal's Office and Soap Lake Police Department are investigating a possible arson-caused fire that happened over the weekend at an empty Soap Lake grade school.

About 30 firefighters were called at about 9:15 p.m. Sunday to the 1960s-era Delancey-Houghton Elementary School on Canna Street, said Bruce Gribble, Grant County's chief deputy fire marshal.

Upon arrival, firefighters saw gray smoke coming from the upper part of the gym, which is where the fire started, he said.

The fire was confined to the gym. It was put out about four hours later, he said.

Firefighters were concerned about the floor and roof caving in while inside and waited before entering the cinder block building, he said.

He said the fire is suspicious and looks like arson. No suspects have been questioned, he added.

There's no electricity in the building, he said.

The school was most recently used about four years ago as a center for after school and outreach programs, said Judy Spencer of McKay Healthcare and Rehab in Soap Lake, which was affiliated with the center.

The school was bought earlier this year by a private owner from out of town, Gribble said. There had reportedly been plans to demolish the building, he said.

He said he didn't know a damage estimate.

The oldest part of the school was built in the 1930s and the school sold for about $92,000 to a man named David Ready, said Denise Mehal of the Soap Lake School District.

Soap Lake Police Chief James Dorris said Tuesday his office is following leads in their investigation.

Firefighters from the Ephrata and Moses Lake Fire Departments and Grant County Fire Districts No. 7 and 13 responded to the blaze.

To report information about the fire, call the fire marshal's office at 509-754-2011 or Soap Lake police at 509-246-1122.