Fire burns North End waterfront home

A North End home along Commencement Bay burned to the ground Wednesday night, at one point so brightly that it was visible from Browns Point, according to the Tacoma Fire Department.

The 40-foot-by-40-foot home in the 3600 block of North Waterview Street was fully involved in fire when firefighters arrived about 9:15 p.m., Battalion Chief Jim Scott said.

Because of one nearby home and the blaze’s size, Tacoma Fire opted to not enter the structure and instead fought the fire from the outside, Scott said.

“It was so fully involved upon arrival, there was no way to safely enter the structure,” Scott said.

Police and neighbors told firefighters that the home’s residents were not home at the time.

The home is a total loss.

Tacoma Fire on Thursday tweeted that an electrical short may have caused the house fire.

This story was originally published March 8, 2017 at 10:08 PM with the headline "Fire burns North End waterfront home."