A Ballard couple’s home away from home, what they saved 20 years for, goes up in flames in moments

A Ballard homeowner says his sprinter van went up in flames after someone threw fireworks inside of it.

Around 11:45 p.m. just south of Northwest 85th Street, Kyle Houchens told KIRO 7 he woke up to a loud explosion in front of him home.

“The explosion was loud enough that it actually shook the house,” Houchens explained.

Just minutes later, he says his van was fully engulfed in the fire.

“It was on fire immediately; it wasn’t like it smoldered…. [flames] were probably to the top of the tree by the time the fire department got here,” Houchens explained.

The 2017 Sportsmobile sprinter van became just a shell of itself. The front seats were melted, the windows completely shattered, and everything was covered in ash.

“Whatever they threw into it was a big enough explosion that it blew glass you know 50-60 feet that way,” Houchens said.

Unfortunately, it’s not the first time Houchen’s van has been vandalized. Fourth of July marked the third incident, involving his van, in the last month and a half.

“Starting Memorial Day weekend, somebody broke out this window and that window. We got it fixed; we went on a camping trip. We’re back 2 days, somebody broke the windshield and set a firework off in front of it,” he added.

Houchens told KIRO 7 the van was he and his wife’s pride and joy for the past 7 years. They’ve used it to camp and explore Washington with several trips in store.

He says they spent two decades saving up, just for it to be gone in one night.

“We had been broke for a really long time so we saved up for probably for about 20 years then bought this and were just planning on using it until the wheels fell off so I just didn’t think it would be this early,” Houchens said.

Houchens says he bought the van for $135,000 and there’s no going back.

If anyone has information about who threw the explosive, contact the Seattle Police Department.