Investigation finds Tacoma duplex fire that killed 3-year-old boy was accidental

TACOMA – A duplex fire that killed a 3-year-old Tacoma boy in May was accidental, an investigation concluded Thursday.

Tacoma Fire spokesman Joe Meinceke said the investigation centered around whether or not the boy, Nehemiah Bonds, had started the fire. There was no evidence to support that possibility, however.

Meinceke confirmed the boy and his mother were napping when the fire started, and that the woman awoke to the smell of smoke and a burning couch. The mother tried to put out the fire and searched the house for Nehemiah, but couldn’t find him and was forced to leave the house.

The fire happened in the 6400 block of S. Tyler St. on May 25.