BELLEVUE, Wash. — Police are investigating multiple vandalism incidents at Bellevue and Redmond recreation areas, including blown-up port-a-potties and a playset that was set on fire.
It's a jarring site for locals who visited the playground at Phantom Lake Elementary for years.
"Everything is burned and everything is black," said 15-year-old Ethan Coldiron who saw the playset he spent countless days on as a child for the first time after it was scorched on Monday. "Everything's just totally destroyed. It's really sad to see this happen."
Early Sunday morning Bellevue police responded to a fireworks call at Phantom Lake Elementary where the fire could be seen across the parking lot.
"It's really devastating to see this happen because I know, like friends and family that go here," Coldiron said. “Even the port-a-potty, it's destroyed too."
This isn't the first incident where a port-a-potty has been vandalized. Neighbors say a week prior, the port-a-potty at the field down the hill was flattened. Bellevue police are also investigating three fires that were sparked in the area that were reported as fireworks going off.
The vandalism goes beyond Bellevue. On Saturday the King County Sheriff's Office said six port-a-potties were destroyed at 60 Acres Park in Redmond. Those responsible used a large, illegal firework called a Cyber Candle.
“These are recreational areas that we like to preserve and keep in prime condition for our youth and people to come,” said Tracy Calderon who was watching her daughter play in a soccer tournament at 60 Acres Park. "To know that somebody could be potentially blowing up something when I'm vulnerable and in the bathroom is quite scary."
The sheriff’s office is aware of the other fires in Bellevue and warns that setting off fireworks right now is extremely dangerous.
Neighbors continue to see the damage with their own eyes, as years of childhood memories are disintegrated.
“I think it's a complete loss for the community,” said Coldiron.
KING 5 reached out to the Bellevue School District, which declined an in-person interview but confirmed two schools had fires set on Sunday. KING 5 asked about the damage to the Phantom Lake playground, how much it originally cost and the price to replace it and has not heard back.