Heat from a roofer’s torch is being listed as the most probable cause of a fire that damaged Beaverton City Hall early Monday morning. Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue investigator Al Kellas said that the investigation into the fire had determined that roofing work involving the use of a torch had been done in the fire’s area of origin Sunday afternoon. A crew from Snyder Roofing, of Tigard, had worked on the roof applying an overlay until approximately 2 p.m. Sunday. In what is a standard practice in the roofing industry, a torch was used to heat the overlay material to the point where it bonded with the roof. Investigators believe that residual heat from that operation ignited a slow, smoldering fire that eventually grew to the point where it burst into open flame and activated two fire sprinklers, triggering the automatic alarm that alerted firefighters to the blaze at 12:44 a.m. Monday morning.

A damage estimate from the fire is not yet available. Restoration contractors retained by the City of Beaverton continue to assess what can be salvaged, in terms of carpeting and building materials. It should be noted that while fire officials will eventually develop a loss estimate for reporting purposes, that estimate will only be of direct property loss, and will not include the additional costs the City has sustained relocating staff during the restoration period.

In a related development, Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue staff who had been housed in a suite of offices on the third floor of City Hall are being moved out the building today to create more space for City staff displaced by the fire. TVF&R had planned to move its North Division offices from City Hall to a remodeled former fire station at Murray and Jenkins on July 1. As a result of the fire and the City’s resulting space needs, the TVF&R personnel are being temporarily placed elsewhere in District facilities, pending their move into the new quarters.