By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
The cause of the fire that destroyed a commercial building in Packwood was electrical in nature, according to fire investigator Jay Birley.
“He plugged his forklift in, they had a pretty big cable, and it faulted out,” Birley said this morning.
The approximately 50-foot by 60-foot metal-sided structure at the 11,800 block of U.S. Highway 12 belonged to a privately owned hydroelectric company, Birley said. Lewis County 911 Communications described it as near milepost 125, west of Packwood.
The fire broke out about 11 p.m. on Wednesday and burned the building to the ground, according to Birley.
Nobody was hurt but the contents lost included metal fabrication equipment, one large diesel-operated forklift and electric forklifts, he said.
The small hydroelectric plant at Burton Creek was purchased by Colorado investor Sam Perry about three years ago, according to a story in the Wall Street Journal [1].