In Seattle, a suspect in the theft of copper wire from a bridge has fled; the damage is $100,000. In the city of Vantage in Washington, a forest fire triggered evacuations and led to the closure of I-90.
Copper Wire Theft From the West Seattle Bridge: Suspect Flees, Damage Worth $100,000
A new scandal is unfolding in Seattle over the theft of non-ferrous metals: a man accused of stealing copper wire from the West Seattle Bridge failed to appear in court, and police have now put him on the run. According to information from KOMO, the incident happened at night, when the suspect, Gregory Wayne Galitzek, was caught by police holding four 30-meter coils of copper wire. Footage from the officers’ body cameras captured the moment of the arrest. But the most shocking part is the cost. Prosecutors say the damage caused during the cable removal is estimated at $100,000, and those expenses will fall on taxpayers—customers of Seattle City Light, the municipal utility company responsible for the city’s lighting and electricity supply.
When the thief was caught, he tried to pass himself off as a City Light employee—so convincingly that, at first, it may have misled people. Local residents, according to the correspondents, described the incident as “shocking, but not surprising.” Lisa Coronado, a resident of West Seattle, remarked with irony: “I feel like we’re living in an alternative reality, and nothing surprises me anymore.” This is the second copper wire theft from the same bridge in the past few weeks, and similar crimes are becoming a systemic problem for transportation agencies, in particular Sound Transit. Thieves sell the copper to scrap yards for cash, and authorities are increasingly looking at how to close this loophole.
Galitzek is charged with theft and impersonating a City Light employee. He was supposed to appear in court this week but did not, and the judge issued a warrant for his arrest with a $5,000 bail. The King County prosecutor’s office is again raising the question of a law that would require scrap metal drop-off sites to photograph the copper wire being accepted and upload the images to a database. Such a measure could significantly simplify investigations and tracking the sale chain for stolen goods. For now, the situation looks like a cycle: copper is stolen, sold, restored—and stolen again, with repairs billed to residents every time. This case highlights not only the ingenuity of criminals, but also the vulnerability of infrastructure and the need for stricter rules in the secondary metals market.
Fire in Washington: Evacuation in Vantage and I-90 Shut Down
On Wednesday, a rapidly spreading wildfire broke out in the U.S. state of Washington. The fire, named Ryegrass Coulee Fire, forced authorities to issue a mandatory Level 3 evacuation order for the city of Vantage and to fully shut down the interstate highway I-90 in both directions. The fire started near the Vantage Bridge on I-90, and, according to local authorities, by the time the news was published the burned area had reached 600 acres (about 240 hectares) and was still growing, threatening homes, power lines, and other structures.
According to a statement from the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office, after several hours of a full I-90 closure, traffic was resumed, but the Vantage Highway remains closed due to power lines sagging over the road. By the evening of Wednesday, residents of Vantage were allowed to return home, but a second evacuation readiness level—“Be Ready”—was put in place, meaning people must be ready to leave their homes at any moment. While the exact cause of the fire is being determined, and across much of central and eastern Washington, a “Red Flag Warning” remains in effect through 10:00 p.m. on Wednesday.
For those unfamiliar with the emergency alert system: Level 3 “Go Now” is the highest threat level, meaning staying in the disaster area is deadly and evacuation must be immediate. Level 2 “Be Ready” requires residents to be fully prepared to leave their homes in the near future if the situation worsens. A Red Flag Warning is a weather warning about the combination of high temperatures, low humidity, and strong winds—conditions that create ideal circumstances for fires to spread quickly.
Authorities continue to fight the fire, and new information is expected to come in over the next few hours. As reported by FOX 13 Seattle, the situation remains tense: firefighters are working to protect infrastructure and homes, and an investigation into the cause of the fire will begin after the fire is contained. Notably, this is not the only major fire in the region—earlier this week, evacuation levels were lowered for the fire near Lake Chelan, confirming the high fire danger across the state. Residents are advised to monitor updates and use caution.
Fire in Washington Forces Evacuations and Shuts Down Interstate I-90
A rapidly spreading wildfire near Vantage, in Kittitas County, Washington, has led to a mass evacuation and the temporary closure of a key transportation corridor—the interstate I-90. According to local authorities, the situation escalated quickly: within a few hours, the fire spread across a large area, posing a threat to homes and infrastructure. As reported by The Seattle Times, by the evening of Wednesday the eastbound side of the highway was reopened, but the westbound lanes remained closed due to a dense smoke screen that severely reduced visibility.
County officials quickly implemented a Level 3 evacuation order—its highest level of danger, requiring residents to leave their homes immediately, without waiting for additional instructions. Initially, the evacuation order applied to all unincorporated areas of Vantage, but by evening the situation had partially stabilized: the order was lifted for areas south of I-90. At the same time, the Level 3 status remained in effect for the northern part of the city, because active firefighting was still ongoing there, with at least one structure affected.
Fire crews were not only fighting the flames, but also dealing with downed power lines, which posed an additional threat. The Kittitas County Sheriff emphasized in a social media statement that, due to fallen wires and the ongoing work by responders, the evacuation on the north side of Vantage remains in place, and the local Vantage Highway remains closed for an indefinite period. Sheriff’s department staff were going door to door to personally warn residents and help elderly people leave the danger zone. The difficulty of suppression efforts was compounded by strong winds and dry conditions typical of this region during summer.
Incidents like this once again underscore the high wildfire risk in American states of the Pacific Northwest, where a combination of a dry climate and abundant forest vegetation creates ideal conditions for fire to spread rapidly. Closing such a vital corridor as I-90 not only disrupts transportation between the eastern and western parts of the state, but also makes it harder for emergency services to operate. While the exact causes of the fire have not yet been determined, authorities are urging residents to stay cautious and to monitor updates through official communication channels.
