A fire at a Department of Homeland Security office is under investigation along with a rock that was thrown through a window there minutes before the fire, but firefighters say the two incidents may not be related. According to the Yakima Fire Department, just after 12:30 p.m. on August 2, firefighters responded to a reported fire near the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement office on River Road. Firefighters said they arrived to find low-level brush burning, along with a nearby homeless encampment that were also on fire. The fire burned up to a privacy fence for the ICE facility, melting part of that fence.
“The fire burned up to the property line of ICE, and burned the privacy fence but did not get onto the ICE property,โ said Jeremiah Stilley, a captain at the Yakima Fire Department. โApproximately five minutes before the fire was found, a rock was thrown through the window at ICE. We donโt know at this time if it was a coincidence and until we get more details, we cannot say factually that it was related.”
DHS officials claimed on social media that local authorities were investigating the fire as an act of arson, but Yakima Fire Department officials have not yet determined a possible cause. Firefighters said a person of interest has been identified, but no arrests have been made. ICE workers were in the facility at the time of the vandalism, but no injuries were reported. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem commented on this specific incident, and said anyone who seeks to harm law enforcement officers will be found and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
