Big structure fire response! Seattle FD R1, Air 26, L4, E40, E29, Chief parade, Rehab 1 +more!

On August 20th, 2023, I filmed Seattle Fire units responding to and on the scene of a structure fire response on Aurora Ave, in north Seattle.
It took me about 10 minutes to drive there, and then I had to walk about a third of a mile because SPD had the road blocked off. I still managed to get some units responding, including Rescue 1, and I caught some on-scene footage. I also got a nice chief parade with Safety 2, Deputy 1, Staff 10, Medic 44 and Battalion 2.
I wish I'd stayed a bit longer, but the smoke shifted and even though I was wearing a mask it got overpowering. As I was driving home, I saw flashing lights in the distance and pulled into a parking lot just in time to get Engine 29 and Air 26 going by.
No word yet on cause, but this was an unused building that had been a squatter/homeless hangout lately. It used to be an emissions testing site, and was repurposed for Covid testing until a few months ago. No injuries reported.
Clip listing:
0:08 - Chief parade
0:40 - Engine 40 responding
0:55 - Rescue 1 responding
1:13 - Ladder 4 responding
1:39 - SPD repositioning
1:48 - Rehab 1 responding
2:15 - On-scene footage with flames visible
2:57 - Quick look at Marshal 5 arriving
3:58 - Engine 29 and Air 26 responding
Outro music: Demilitarized Zone by Ethan Meixsell, via the KZbin audio library.

[@SeattleResponses]

Caught the entire thing on traffic cams. Crazy! Definitely thought it was gonna be a 2 alarm. Good catches, as always!

[@lucaslaughing]

There were some big flames, that's for sure! Thanks for watching!

[@PierceFan]

Man that new Rescue 1 is sweet! Nice catch man!

[@lucaslaughing]

I agree, I thought you'd be a fan of it 😀 - thanks for watching!

[@WATrafficCamResponses]

Awesome that you got some rarer units out of your first due area like Engine 40 and Ladder 4!

[@lucaslaughing]

Yeah, I was happy to get both of those - especially with that airhorn show from E40! Thanks for watching!

[@anaheimfdvideographer]

Oh my goodness great catches on these! I literally saw this on the traffic cams! It was a crazy experience when I saw this

[@lucaslaughing]

Thanks, I appreciate it! Yeah, there was a good traffic camera angle on this one - I'll probably include some footage in the next Quick Clips on my traffic camera channel.

[@georgefannon5227]

That was a awesome catch my friend

[@lucaslaughing]

Thanks for watching George!

[@n0cturnal3D]

Wow, these are great man!

[@lucaslaughing]

Thank you, I appreciate it!

[@LiamPattisonPhotography]

Awesome catches Lucas, that Chief parade was sweet. Nice timing getting there for multiple responses!

[@Remi763]

There was no chief parade, there was a MEGA CHIEF PARADE

[@lucaslaughing]

Thanks Liam! Yeah, I ran out the door within two minutes of PulsePoint going off, but it still took me a bit to drive out there so I was pretty lucky with the timing.

[@Xtinnoker]

Nice catch Lucas, Thanks Buddy!

[@lucaslaughing]

Thanks for watching!

[@glauks]

Nice i have been watching your other videos on your other youtube channel SeattleTrafficCams for a while now was nice to see you added a little caption to say you had another channel (This One) so now i know you have 2 channels i have 2 great channels to watch when you post stuff Thanks keep up the great work 😀😁

[@lucaslaughing]

Oh awesome, thanks for coming over from the other channel! I've had this one for about 11 years, and try to upload about once a week. It's less varied than the traffic camera channel (mostly just stuff in north Seattle) but I hope you still enjoy it 😀

[@SuperHusky83]

The brass parade.

[@craigmclean8260]

Great catch! I saw the response listing on SFD's "Realtime" page, and wondered if this was the Home Depot, but I see it was north of there (used to go to that HD all the time, starting in 1995, when remodeling my house in Ballard). Looks as if it's been a bad Summer for fires in Seattle...and the forest fire smoke looks choking!

[@lucaslaughing]

Thanks Craig! Yeah, it was just north of the Home Depot - it was a bad morning for anyone with projects that needed to get done. It has been a pretty active summer for fires, and the wildfire smoke definitely added to the misery. Thankfully it's cleared out, at least for the next few days.

[@jeffturkel3344]

Pretty cool impressive lineup on the response. Great on scene footage Lucas. Good job!

[@lucaslaughing]

Thank you Jeff! Yeah, there were some fun units on scene, and it's always exciting to catch Rescue 1!

[@petewilliamsiv3512]

i was Watching & Listening to it And also kicking myself to miss out on a good fire

[@lucaslaughing]

Yeah, too bad you couldn't catch a ride with one of the south end units! It's been a busy week or two up here, but I'm sure you'll get some action down there before too long.

[@petewilliamsiv3512]

maybe one day you get me in the Pio or one the Chief or the Air rig LOL @@lucaslaughing

[@SilverGoth]

Great coverage of this fire! I’m glad you left when you did though.

[@lucaslaughing]

Thank you! I wish I'd stayed just a bit longer to get a better view of Air 26, but I probably made the right choice for my lungs...

[@FirePhoenixEmergencyVideos]

Nice catches Lucas! Damn Engine 40 and Rescue 1 sure put on quite the show! Nice little bonus round with Air 26 as well. How's the wildfire smoke down there? It's been horrible up here the last couple days, but honestly I'm surprised it's taken this long for it to get smokey here

[@lucaslaughing]

Thank you! Yeah, I loved the horn show from E40, and R1 is always a beauty. I wish I'd gotten better footage of Air 26, but I'm sure I'll get another chance. The smoke got here on Saturday and got pretty bad - I think the AQI hit 180. It's much better this evening, though, and supposed to be good for the next day or two. I hope it's getting better up there too!

[@geoffg8840]

Great catches. But i hate the electronic q winding down. Lol it sounds like it's sick

[@lucaslaughing]

Thank you! You're right about the siren, though, it does sound a little sad as it dies...

[@jerrymeshulam5853]

At 2:35: What's with the two guys setting up folding chairs next to an ice chest? Seems like an odd place for a picnic.

[@lucaslaughing]

I mean, I think it's a great picnic spot, but that was the rehab area. When firefighters are rotated out of active firefighting, they rest and rehydrate at the rehab area before getting sent back in. Thanks for watching Jerry!

[@Remi763]

Vancouver never has chief parades 😢

[@steve87thpsap]

Funny that it was the old emissions testing building, how much pollution did it release? Nice catch.

[@lucaslaughing]

Yeah, definitely an ironic location - thanks for watching!

[@SuperHusky83]

Air 26 isn't seen often..

[@lucaslaughing]

Yeah, this was only my second time seeing it, and the last time was even further away 😂