An overhead look at the aftermath following a fire at the All Saints Lutheran Church in Auburn on June 30, 2025.
AUBURN, Wash. — Federal authorities are investigating the cause of a fire at a south King County church that started just after midnight Monday.
All Saints' Lutheran Church, at S 272nd St and Military Road South, is near Star Lake in unincorporated Auburn. A KOMO News photographer saw investigators with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives at the scene Monday morning.
Anna Schmidt, a spokesperson with ATF, said preliminary information suggests that the fire started in a travel trailer parked behind the church and then spread to the main building. Schmidt told KOMO News it is unclear at this point what might have caused the trailer to catch fire and remains under investigation.
Michael Mwarenge lived in that trailer and served as the security guard for the church. He told KOMO News he locked up the trailer around 10 p.m. Sunday to visit someone who called him, and notified the property manager he would be gone.
Mwarenge said he wasn’t certain how the fire could have started.
“I'm feeling so bad. I'm feeling so, so bad,” Mwaregne said. “When I was told that, I cried because I knew I was becoming homeless."
A witness told KOMO News they saw fireworks in the area right before the flames broke out. Fireworks have been illegal in unincorporated King County since 2022. Investigators said at this point, fireworks are not believed to be a contributing factor, but nothing has been ruled out.
Meanwhile, parishioners came by throughout the day to see the damage for themselves.
“Our church is a fairly small church but it is a family that has been together for many, many years,” said Joyce Sykes, one of the church members. “We just stick together and help each other when we need it so."
All Saints’ Lutheran Church plans to continue Sunday services, even if it means gathering on the lawn outside the building. They will also remain committed to their ministries, which involves feeding and clothing the poor and homeless.
“Every week we make at least 50 or 60 bags of food, which is sandwiches, water, some fruit, and we take it up to the Kent Senior Center and feed the homeless on Fridays every week,” Sykes said. “We also have several churches that use our facility here, or did use our facility here, for their services."
One side of the building is a total loss and while the sanctuary is still standing, it has smoke and water damage. Aside from the travel trailer, there are also some burned trees at the corner of the building. The building was vacant at the time and no one was hurt.At one point, the fire became so fierce that firefighters called a second alarm to summon more resources to fight the flames.
“So sad because the part that has burned was the original church," Sykes said. “It's got a lot of memories for everybody."