MARYSVILLE — Investigators into Tuesday’s series of arsons along I-5 are looking for tips.
The fires, set in stretches of dry grass in the early afternoon, snarled traffic and kept firefighters scrambling from Everett north past the Snohomish County line.
“We don’t have a whole lot,” Washington State Patrol trooper Heather Axtman said Wednesday. “If a citizen saw anything out of the ordinary, I would urge them to call.”
Information can be passed on to the Washington State Patrol at 360-654-1204.
Investigators are looking for two men a Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy said he spotted north of Stanwood apparently attempting to start a fire with a road flare.
The deputy said the men drove off before he could confront them.
The suspects were in a light-colored Hyundai Sonata. One was believed to be in his 50s, while the other appeared older. Both men had light-colored hair. They also recovered a flare with a fingerprint that may be linked to the fires.
Troopers are working with fire investigators from the Snohomish County Fire Marshal’s Office and local jurisdictions, including the cities of Everett and Marysville.
At least 10 brush fires were started early Monday afternoon. They were set along I-5’s northbound and southbound lanes from just north of the Snohomish River Bridge to south Skagit County. Bottlenecks developed because of the smoke and need for emergency crews to have the room to put out the fires.
Fire investigators from Everett and elsewhere in Snohomish County looked for evidence at the different fire scenes. They have sent the flare to a crime lab for analysis.
Cameras maintained by the Washington State Department of Transportation apparently won’t be of much help. The cameras provide live feeds, but only record when there is a specific request from law enforcement, transportation department spokesman Travis Phelps said.
With more than 500 cameras in the Greater Seattle area, there isn’t enough storage capacity to routinely record, he said. Most of Monday’s fires had been set before the transportation department even knew there was a concern.
“Our cameras’ real job is to see what traffic is like in an area and to let people know,” Phelps said.
Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446, stevick@heraldnet.com.
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