Heather Curtis
WMAL.com
UPDATE: 5/3/18
WASHINGTON (WMAL) – Improperly disposed of cigarettes caused separate fires Wednesday at the Forest Glenn Senior Residence and United Bank at the Fair Lakes Shopping Center according to the acting chief of the Fairfax County Fire Department John Caussin.
“In the springtime is when we have the red flag days, meaning brush fires, forest fires are very likely if someone improperly disposes of their ashes,” Caussin said at a press conference Thursday afternoon.
When soil gets to dry, according to Caussin, it’s highly flammable and acts as an accelerant.
Caussin said so far this year 40 percent of the structure fires in Fairfax County were caused by the improper disposal of smoking materials.
The bank fire started around 4 p.m. after someone threw a cigarette in the mulch around an evergreen tree at the corner of the building according to Caussin. Employees were able to get themselves out unharmed.
Earlier that day around 1 p.m. a three alarm fire forced the evacuation of around 100 people from the Forest Glenn Senior Residence on Windmere Court in Centreville.
Then around 1:30 a fire broke out in a townhome complex on Watermark Circle. It displaced 30 people. Caussin did not say what caused that fire.
“Thankfully there was no loss of human life yesterday, and that in itself is very remarkable when you look at the scale and the scope of what we were dealing with,” Caussin said.
Nobody was seriously injured in any of the fires either.
Caussin credited teamwork from multiple departments with saving lives Wednesday.
Now the recovery phase is underway, which includes finding temporary housing for the displaced residents and having building inspectors and insurance companies assess the damage.
Maria Leaf
WMAL.com
5/2/18
CENTREVILLE, VA (WMAL) – Fire officials say it will be “several weeks” before residents at the Forest Glen Senior apartments can return home after flames tore through the homes this afternoon.
Crews were called to the Forest Glen Apartments around noon Wednesday. Officials say as many as 100 units could be deemed unsafe to live in due a partial collapse and water damage.
Update 14400 block of Woodmere Ct in Centreville: Heavy Fire Conditions on Multiple Floors, EMS Task Force & 3rd Alarm Enroute pic.twitter.com/bmbT9c0V59
— Fairfax Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) May 2, 2018
Fairfax Fire and Rescue says two people have been taken to the hospital, but are expected to be OK. Three people were treated at the scene with minor injuries.
Update 14400 block of Woodmere Ct in Centreville: Crews working on extinguishing fire. Two patients transported to area hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Three treated on scene minor injuries pic.twitter.com/g5IqRkZP1P
— Fairfax Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) May 2, 2018
Acting Fire Chief John Caussin provided this update:
Update 14400 block of Woodmere Ct in Centreville: Acting Fire Chief John Caussin with video update pic.twitter.com/2jcdn14LdD
— Fairfax Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) May 2, 2018
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Copyright 2018 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. Photo: Fairfax Fire/Rescue
