Firefighters, occupants injured during fire at Greenbank home

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, June 24, 2026

A fire and related explosions at a Greenbank home injured residents and three firefighters and spread to a neighboring house Wednesday afternoon.

About 700 pounds of fireworks were inside the house on Smugglers Cove Road, according to Kolton Kellison, a firefighter with Central Whidbey Island Fire and Rescue. A “large explosion” shortly after firefighters arrived threw one firefighter “into a truck” and knocked another to the ground, he said.

Those two firefighters were transported to Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, and the third to Island Hospital. All are in stable condition.

Residents also were injured, though Kellison could not say how many people were hurt or describe the severity of their injuries.

Kellison declined to identify the firefighters. A release from Central Whidbey Island Fire and Rescue states they belonged to their department and to South Whidbey Fire/EMS.

A caller reported the fire at about 2:45 p.m., according to the release.

As of Wednesday evening, investigations are still underway as to the cause of the fire and the blast. The American Red Cross Northwest Region said three homes were affected. Around 5 p.m., Kellison said crews had begun overhaul operations.

North Whidbey Fire and Rescue, Navy Fire and South Whidbey Fire/EMS, the Langley Police Department and the Island County Sheriff’s Office also responded to the incident.

Even after the initial blaze was under control, another small explosion occurred shortly after 5 p.m. About 90 minutes later, Langley Police Chief Tavier Wasser said the scene was still smoldering and fireworks continued to detonate.

Neighbors attested to the intensity of the explosions and fire.

Carol Lewellen lives a few houses down from the scene of the fire, and has lived there since 2013. Around 3:30 p.m., she began to hear loud, repeated explosions while knitting on her front porch. She compared the sound to engine backfiring.

“All of a sudden I heard another big kaboom, and that’s when I looked over and saw just the big, huge black cloud of smoke,” she said.

Steven Ulibarri-Kearney, another witness to the fire, described the home as “burned down.” White smoke, which turned black, emitted from the home and fireworks detonated after the fire began. Eventually, a “particularly loud explosion” occurred which “shook the ground,” he said.

Red Cross Disaster Action is prepared to provide emergency shelter, food clothing and other aid if needed, the release states.

The News-Times will update the story as more information is available.