Fire damages large building at former Ostrom’s mushroom farm in Lacey
A building estimated at 75,000 square feet was damaged by fire Wednesday afternoon, sending a dark plume of smoke into the air that was visible for miles, according to Lacey Fire District 3.
Lacey fire crews, as well as crews from six other departments in the region, were dispatched to the blaze at the former Ostrom’s mushroom farm about 4 p.m., Lacey Fire Chief Steve Brooks said.
The former farm is near the intersection of Marvin Road Southeast and Steilacoom Road, near Nisqually Middle School and the Regional Athletic Complex.
As of about 7:30 p.m., the fire was largely knocked down and crews were working to extinguish hot spots, Brooks said. He expected crews to remain on scene all night and into Thursday morning.
No injuries were reported.
Crews initially fought the fire from outside the building, but later entered it and found no one inside, he said. Although it was a large building, the structure inside has been cut up into multiple sections, Brooks said.
Ostrom’s still owns the property, but hasn’t operated the site as a farm in more than a year, he said. The business, which relocated to the Yakima area, is aware of the fire, Brooks said.
The cause of the fire is undetermined, and because there was no obvious cause, Lacey Fire District 3 will now work with the Lacey Police Department on the investigation, which is standard procedure, he said.
This story was originally published May 31, 2023 at 8:05 PM.
