Fire in White Center burns through neighborhood’s first LGBTQ+ bar and damages other businesses

A fire in White Center early Monday morning caused extensive damage to the neighborhood’s first LGBTQ+ bar, The Lumber Yard, and a tattoo parlor, Rat City Tat2.

There were no injuries reported, said Eric Autry, a spokesperson for South King County Fire & Rescue. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but as of Monday afternoon there was no indication that fireworks caused the flames, according to the King County Sheriff’s Office.

The other businesses damaged — either by the flames, smoke or through water from the response — include a salon, a boxing gym, a bar called Dottie’s Double Wide and a Mexican grocery store called La Típica Oaxaqueña, Autry said.

A Seattle Fire Department truck was in the area just before 2 a.m. when it was flagged down by someone who said the tattoo parlor was on fire, said Autry. It appears the fire started near The Lumber Yard, which is near the corner of 16th Avenue Southwest and Roxbury Street, and spread through the shared attic space of the strip mall.

Video taken by a KOMO reporter Monday morning showed the bar’s blackened holes in the ceiling and blown-out front windows. The tattoo parlor also appeared in significant disarray.

A GoFundMe page set up to pay for damages at The Lumber Yard had already raised $50,000 as of Monday afternoon. The Southgate Roller Rink, just down the street, announced on its Instagram page it would be donating 100% of revenues from its Pride skating night this week to the bar. The bar was closed on July 4 because of a neighborhood power outage, according to its Facebook page.

A full investigation of the fire will be released Tuesday, a Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said.