Cause of Seattle Plant Fire Undetermined

The Seattle Fire Department says the cause of a two-alarm fire at the Asko metal finishing plant in the Washington city’s Fremont neighborhood remains undetermined.

Department spokesman Kyle Moore says the loss from Tuesday’s fire is likely in the millions of dollars, but the exact amount will be up to insurance adjusters.

The fire created a large plume of smoke on the north side of Lake Union and raised concerns about toxic runoff because of hazardous chemicals used for etching, cleaning and metal plating.

Firefighters remained on the scene overnight to douse several flare-ups. City inspectors are checking the building’s structural integrity Wednesday.

Moore says the fire that took more than two hours to knock down was one of the biggest fires this year in Seattle.