Wade was a 10 year old boy who died in the Bellingham pipeline explosion at Whatcom Creek. His good friend Stephen Tsiorvas died there also. Also perishing as a result of the Olympic pipeline leak and explosion was Liam Wood.
On Thursday afternoon, June 10, 1999, a 16-inch fuel line owned by the Olympic Pipe Line Company ruptures in Bellingham, spilling 277,200 gallons of gasoline into Hanna and Whatcom creeks. The volatile fuel explodes, killing three youths: Liam Wood, 18, and Wade King and Stephen Tsiorvas, both age 10.
In Wade's honor, the Wade King Elementary School and Western Washington University student recreation center were named for him.
At 4:35 p.m. on June 10th, an Olympic Pipeline field worker who happened to be in the Whatcom Creek area called the company's command center in Renton, reporting a strong odor of gasoline. Local residents and businesses also started calling the Whatcom County 911 Dispatch Center reporting the strong odor of gasoline in the vicinity of Whatcom Creek.
At about 4:45 p.m on June 10th, Bellingham Fire Department Hazardous Materials Teams, sent to investigate, found copious quantities of gasoline flowing down the creek toward Bellingham Bay. The water was pink and the fumes overwhelming. The Bellingham Fire Department and Police Department immediately began evacuating the area and setting up barricades. The Bellingham Fire Department notified Olympic Pipe Line there was gasoline flowing down Whatcom Creek toward the city. But it was too late.
At 4:55 p.m., the gasoline vapors exploded, creating a river of fire from the rupture site near the Whatcom Falls Water Treatment Station, one and a half miles down the creek, to Interstate-5. The massive fireball sent a plume of smoke 30,000 feet into the air, visible from Anacortes to Vancouver B. C. Dense black smoke caused the closure of Interstate-5 for more than an hour. Fearing the fire would continue flowing down the creek into downtown Bellingham, police officers began evacuating businesses.
Gasoline migrated into the city's sewer system, and the vapors were at explosive levels for an hour. The U. S. Coast Guard, concerned the fuel could ignite dock pilings and vessels, closed Bellingham Bay for a one-mile radius from the mouth of Whatcom Creek.
By 6:30 p.m., firefighters managed to get the major blazes under control, and by 7:00 p.m., the black smoke had largely dissipated. Fortunately, the fire did not travel west from Interstate-5, and this saved downtown Bellingham. The inferno, estimated to have reached 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, caused a high-voltage power line and two substations to be shut down, disrupting electrical service to about 58,000 Bellingham customers for several hours.
In a twist of fate, King and Tsiorvas became unwitting heroes. In a statement to the news media on June 18, 1999, Bellingham Mayor Mark Asmendson said, "The cause of the fire was the fuel released from the Olympic pipeline. The fact that it was ignited was inevitable. With the thousands and thousands of gallons of fuel that were proceeding down Whatcom Creek, had the ignition not taken place where it did and at the time it did, the damage to this community and the loss of life would have been far greater. These boys completely, without notice or any awareness, were involved in an action that ended up being heroic for the city of Bellingham."
On Thursday afternoon, June 10, 1999, a 16-inch fuel line owned by the Olympic Pipe Line Company ruptures in Bellingham, spilling 277,200 gallons of gasoline into Hanna and Whatcom creeks. The volatile fuel explodes, killing three youths: Liam Wood, 18, and Wade King and Stephen Tsiorvas, both age 10.
In Wade's honor, the Wade King Elementary School and Western Washington University student recreation center were named for him.
At 4:35 p.m. on June 10th, an Olympic Pipeline field worker who happened to be in the Whatcom Creek area called the company's command center in Renton, reporting a strong odor of gasoline. Local residents and businesses also started calling the Whatcom County 911 Dispatch Center reporting the strong odor of gasoline in the vicinity of Whatcom Creek.
At about 4:45 p.m on June 10th, Bellingham Fire Department Hazardous Materials Teams, sent to investigate, found copious quantities of gasoline flowing down the creek toward Bellingham Bay. The water was pink and the fumes overwhelming. The Bellingham Fire Department and Police Department immediately began evacuating the area and setting up barricades. The Bellingham Fire Department notified Olympic Pipe Line there was gasoline flowing down Whatcom Creek toward the city. But it was too late.
At 4:55 p.m., the gasoline vapors exploded, creating a river of fire from the rupture site near the Whatcom Falls Water Treatment Station, one and a half miles down the creek, to Interstate-5. The massive fireball sent a plume of smoke 30,000 feet into the air, visible from Anacortes to Vancouver B. C. Dense black smoke caused the closure of Interstate-5 for more than an hour. Fearing the fire would continue flowing down the creek into downtown Bellingham, police officers began evacuating businesses.
Gasoline migrated into the city's sewer system, and the vapors were at explosive levels for an hour. The U. S. Coast Guard, concerned the fuel could ignite dock pilings and vessels, closed Bellingham Bay for a one-mile radius from the mouth of Whatcom Creek.
By 6:30 p.m., firefighters managed to get the major blazes under control, and by 7:00 p.m., the black smoke had largely dissipated. Fortunately, the fire did not travel west from Interstate-5, and this saved downtown Bellingham. The inferno, estimated to have reached 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, caused a high-voltage power line and two substations to be shut down, disrupting electrical service to about 58,000 Bellingham customers for several hours.
In a twist of fate, King and Tsiorvas became unwitting heroes. In a statement to the news media on June 18, 1999, Bellingham Mayor Mark Asmendson said, "The cause of the fire was the fuel released from the Olympic pipeline. The fact that it was ignited was inevitable. With the thousands and thousands of gallons of fuel that were proceeding down Whatcom Creek, had the ignition not taken place where it did and at the time it did, the damage to this community and the loss of life would have been far greater. These boys completely, without notice or any awareness, were involved in an action that ended up being heroic for the city of Bellingham."
Wade was a 10 year old boy who died in the Bellingham pipeline explosion at Whatcom Creek. His good friend Stephen Tsiorvas died there also. Also perishing as a result of the Olympic pipeline leak and explosion was Liam Wood.
On Thursday afternoon, June 10, 1999, a 16-inch fuel line owned by the Olympic Pipe Line Company ruptures in Bellingham, spilling 277,200 gallons of gasoline into Hanna and Whatcom creeks. The volatile fuel explodes, killing three youths: Liam Wood, 18, and Wade King and Stephen Tsiorvas, both age 10.
In Wade's honor, the Wade King Elementary School and Western Washington University student recreation center were named for him.
At 4:35 p.m. on June 10th, an Olympic Pipeline field worker who happened to be in the Whatcom Creek area called the company's command center in Renton, reporting a strong odor of gasoline. Local residents and businesses also started calling the Whatcom County 911 Dispatch Center reporting the strong odor of gasoline in the vicinity of Whatcom Creek.
At about 4:45 p.m on June 10th, Bellingham Fire Department Hazardous Materials Teams, sent to investigate, found copious quantities of gasoline flowing down the creek toward Bellingham Bay. The water was pink and the fumes overwhelming. The Bellingham Fire Department and Police Department immediately began evacuating the area and setting up barricades. The Bellingham Fire Department notified Olympic Pipe Line there was gasoline flowing down Whatcom Creek toward the city. But it was too late.
At 4:55 p.m., the gasoline vapors exploded, creating a river of fire from the rupture site near the Whatcom Falls Water Treatment Station, one and a half miles down the creek, to Interstate-5. The massive fireball sent a plume of smoke 30,000 feet into the air, visible from Anacortes to Vancouver B. C. Dense black smoke caused the closure of Interstate-5 for more than an hour. Fearing the fire would continue flowing down the creek into downtown Bellingham, police officers began evacuating businesses.
Gasoline migrated into the city's sewer system, and the vapors were at explosive levels for an hour. The U. S. Coast Guard, concerned the fuel could ignite dock pilings and vessels, closed Bellingham Bay for a one-mile radius from the mouth of Whatcom Creek.
By 6:30 p.m., firefighters managed to get the major blazes under control, and by 7:00 p.m., the black smoke had largely dissipated. Fortunately, the fire did not travel west from Interstate-5, and this saved downtown Bellingham. The inferno, estimated to have reached 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, caused a high-voltage power line and two substations to be shut down, disrupting electrical service to about 58,000 Bellingham customers for several hours.
In a twist of fate, King and Tsiorvas became unwitting heroes. In a statement to the news media on June 18, 1999, Bellingham Mayor Mark Asmendson said, "The cause of the fire was the fuel released from the Olympic pipeline. The fact that it was ignited was inevitable. With the thousands and thousands of gallons of fuel that were proceeding down Whatcom Creek, had the ignition not taken place where it did and at the time it did, the damage to this community and the loss of life would have been far greater. These boys completely, without notice or any awareness, were involved in an action that ended up being heroic for the city of Bellingham."
On Thursday afternoon, June 10, 1999, a 16-inch fuel line owned by the Olympic Pipe Line Company ruptures in Bellingham, spilling 277,200 gallons of gasoline into Hanna and Whatcom creeks. The volatile fuel explodes, killing three youths: Liam Wood, 18, and Wade King and Stephen Tsiorvas, both age 10.
In Wade's honor, the Wade King Elementary School and Western Washington University student recreation center were named for him.
At 4:35 p.m. on June 10th, an Olympic Pipeline field worker who happened to be in the Whatcom Creek area called the company's command center in Renton, reporting a strong odor of gasoline. Local residents and businesses also started calling the Whatcom County 911 Dispatch Center reporting the strong odor of gasoline in the vicinity of Whatcom Creek.
At about 4:45 p.m on June 10th, Bellingham Fire Department Hazardous Materials Teams, sent to investigate, found copious quantities of gasoline flowing down the creek toward Bellingham Bay. The water was pink and the fumes overwhelming. The Bellingham Fire Department and Police Department immediately began evacuating the area and setting up barricades. The Bellingham Fire Department notified Olympic Pipe Line there was gasoline flowing down Whatcom Creek toward the city. But it was too late.
At 4:55 p.m., the gasoline vapors exploded, creating a river of fire from the rupture site near the Whatcom Falls Water Treatment Station, one and a half miles down the creek, to Interstate-5. The massive fireball sent a plume of smoke 30,000 feet into the air, visible from Anacortes to Vancouver B. C. Dense black smoke caused the closure of Interstate-5 for more than an hour. Fearing the fire would continue flowing down the creek into downtown Bellingham, police officers began evacuating businesses.
Gasoline migrated into the city's sewer system, and the vapors were at explosive levels for an hour. The U. S. Coast Guard, concerned the fuel could ignite dock pilings and vessels, closed Bellingham Bay for a one-mile radius from the mouth of Whatcom Creek.
By 6:30 p.m., firefighters managed to get the major blazes under control, and by 7:00 p.m., the black smoke had largely dissipated. Fortunately, the fire did not travel west from Interstate-5, and this saved downtown Bellingham. The inferno, estimated to have reached 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, caused a high-voltage power line and two substations to be shut down, disrupting electrical service to about 58,000 Bellingham customers for several hours.
In a twist of fate, King and Tsiorvas became unwitting heroes. In a statement to the news media on June 18, 1999, Bellingham Mayor Mark Asmendson said, "The cause of the fire was the fuel released from the Olympic pipeline. The fact that it was ignited was inevitable. With the thousands and thousands of gallons of fuel that were proceeding down Whatcom Creek, had the ignition not taken place where it did and at the time it did, the damage to this community and the loss of life would have been far greater. These boys completely, without notice or any awareness, were involved in an action that ended up being heroic for the city of Bellingham."
