Fire district to use home in Third Avenue park for fire training
Published 2:30 pm Monday, March 16, 2026
A planned house fire is set for Saturday along South Third Avenue within the City of Sequim’s Gerhardt Park as part of firefighters’ training exercise.
Clallam County Fire District 3 will start live-fire training exercises at 8 a.m. Saturday, March 21 within the two-story home at 1610 S. Third Ave.
Fire Chief Justin Grider wrote in a press release that firefighters will ignite and extinguish a series of controlled fires within the home.
The structure will be allowed to burn to the ground under controlled conditions with fire crews establishing hose lines around the home at all times to ensure the fire remains confined and fully controlled, he said.
Community members are asked to avoid the immediate area if possible and consider using alternative routes, such as Happy Valley Road, because fire apparatus and equipment will be staged alongside the road.
For safety reasons, no spectator viewing areas will be available. However, fire officials will be on site at the City of Sequim Public Works yard at 670 S. Third Ave. to provide updates on the training.
Smoke may occasionally drift into nearby neighborhoods, fire officials said.
Individuals who are sensitive to smoke, including those with asthma, respiratory conditions, or other health concerns, may consider closing windows and doors, staying inside, and/or temporarily turning off outside air intake on heating/cooling systems.
The training is weather dependent, such as high winds.
City staff said the park will be available to the public within a few days after the training exercise.
“We will cordon off the immediate area around the burn location while we get things cleaned up,” said Sequim Public Works Director Paul Bucich.
“We just ask the public to stay back from the working area until we have it all sorted out.”
Grider said the training provides hands-on experience with real fire behavior in a controlled environment, allowing firefighters to test equipment, tactics, and teamwork while preparing for real emergencies.
With further questions, contact Grider at 360-683-4242 extension 117 or via email to jgrider@ccfd3.org.
Home’s background
The home is about 80 years old and 834 square feet. It was originally 12 feet by 14 feet.
Anton “Toni” and Rosa Gerhardt bought the property in 1973 and built the second home next door in the mid-1970s.
Toni was a German captive during World War II, and most of his siblings were killed along with his parents when their family farm was invaded. Rosa immigrated to America before Anton in 1935 from her home in Moschendorf, Austria. They moved to Sequim from Chicago in the late 1960s.
Anton died in 2007 at age 88 and Rosa died at age 100 in 2013. In 2006, they agreed to give the property to the City of Sequim in exchange for a domestic water connection and on the condition it remain a park.
In September 2024, city staff determined the home and nearby outbuildings as unsafe and unusable and declared them surplus.
After various open house viewings, the city held a sealed bid public auction for the structures on June 6, 2025 but received no bids.
The outbuildings were demolished on June 9, 2025 with usable materials salvaged and the remainder disposed of as solid waste, city staff said.
Bucich said the city explored relocation proposals for the home with two private parties, but both fell through due to the deteriorated condition of the structure.
The city agreed to a training exercise in late October 2025 with Clallam County Fire District 3 at no cost to the city.
City staff said they obtained a City Department of Community Development demolition permit, Olympic Region Clean Air Agency (ORCAA) Fire Training Approval, and conducted all ORCAA abatement requirements.
A survey by NW Asbestos (costing $765) in December 2025 identified asbestos in the kitchen and bathroom flooring, and abatement by Advance Environmental was completed in last month for just under $7,100.
Various appliances, carpet and cabinets were removed by city crew members from the home in December.
City staff originally budgeted $150,000 to remove the home and outbuildings via demolition but Bucich wanted to explore options of an auction to reduce costs for the city.
A Master Plan for the Gerhardt Park property is anticipated to be completed by the end of the year with public outreach anticipated this spring.
For more information, visit sequimwa.gov.
