FORKS — Federal Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigators have determined that an electrical fire early Monday morning sparked the blaze that destroyed the International Order of Odd Fellows hall and the store next door that had been the Dazzled by Twilight souvenir shop.
“They made their determination that it was not criminal,” Clallam Fire District No. 1 Chief Phil Arbeiter told the Peninsula Daily News this morning.
The investigators sifted through the rubble Thursday.
Arbeiter said the fire began in an electrical panel in the IOOF hall, which housed the Rainforest Art Center on the second floor.
Two storefronts, including a store specializing in Latin American items, faced Forks’ main street on the ground floor.
The building, owned by the city of Forks, was insured for $3.7 million.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5060, or at paul.gottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
