Vashon Island Fire & Rescue responded to a southend brush fire last night just off the beach near the Tahlequah ferry dock.

The department was called out at 10:30 p.m. for the fire, which Interim Assistant Chief Bob Larsen said measured approximately 20 by 40 feet. About a dozen crew members responded, he added, with two brush trucks and a water tender.

He noted the ferry dock was never in danger, as the fire was in an area of green blackberries and was slow moving. The cause of the fire is not known.