The King County Fire investigator has determined that the Jan. 18 condominium fire at the Harbor Village complex in Kenmore was accidental, according to Kenmore Fire Department public information officer Terri Jones. No one was injured.

A person was replacing a microwave oven above the stove and a combustible material was placed on the glass stovetop to protect it during the installation. As the person left the condo unit, one of the stovetop burners was inadvertently turned on, igniting the combustible material on the stovetop. The estimated loss to the condo unit is $220,000.

A fire in one condo unit affects everyone living in the building, Jones wrote in a press release. The fire can spread, leaving several occupants without a home, or worse, it can take lives. The condo building was built in 1982, before building and fire codes required fire-alarm and fire-sprinkler systems be installed in this type of occupancy, leaving occupants without the added protection of these life-saving systems.