'Spirits' Told Graham Woman To Set House On Fire: Sheriff

GRAHAM, WA - Several residents displaced by a destructive house fire early Tuesday reportedly told both police and fire officials their roommate drank rubbing alcohol and poured it on the floor before igniting it, ultimately causing roughly $175,000 in damages.

The incident occurred in the 20100-block of 75th Avenue Court East near Graham just after 1 a.m. April 16. Graham Fire & Rescue crews were already on-scene battling the blaze when Pierce County Sheriff's deputies arrived, and the 51-year-old woman who allegedly started the fire was already en route to Tacoma General Hospital with minor burns, officials said.

Prior to her departure, however, the woman reportedly told medics she'd lit the fire. Additionally, medics reported to police the woman had been drinking rubbing alcohol when "spirits" told her to pour it on the floor.

The four other residents who lived in the home told police they were initially alerted to the fire by the smoke alarm. As the residents made their way outside to safety, one of the male roommates went to the woman's room to get her but found her door apparently barricaded from the inside.

The man told police he tried to smash it open using a fire extinguisher but ultimately had to abandon the effort to save himself.

Outside, the residents reportedly watched as the woman jumped from her second-level bedroom window onto a truck parked below.

After bailing out the window, the woman reportedly laid in a nearby yard making odd statements.

Speaking with investigators, the residents shared with police a variety of other seemingly unusual statements made by the woman in the days leading up to the Tuesday incident.

The woman reportedly made comments about earthquakes and Jesus' return in text messages to her sister in recent days. The woman's sister reportedly did not know whether mental illness was a factor in the strange behavior but said she thinks her sister takes Zoloft, an antidepressant medication used to treat major depressive and obsessive-compulsive disorders.

A neighbor who was interviewed told police she woke to the noise outside and found the woman laying in the yard, saying something about "the ground shaking, an earthquake, and something about rubbing alcohol," officials reported.

It's unclear at this time whether the woman will be criminally charged for her alleged role in the incident.

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