A sprinkler system put out a fire that broke out in the kitchen of a Dumfries apartment Wednesday afternoon, causing about $5,000 in damage.
There were no injuries reported in the blaze, but a building inspector posted two units in the complex as unsafe, according to the Prince William County fire department.
At about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, fire and rescue crews were dispatched to the fire at a row of apartments in the 17000 block of Islip Loop in Dumfries, the fire department said. As they entered the complex, they went to the kitchen of the unit where the fire originated.
They saw that the apartment’s sprinkler system had been activated, suppressing and extinguishing the fire, the department said. Smoke remained throughout the unit with minor fire damage.
The Prince William Fire Marshal’s Office determined that the fire originated on the kitchen stove, and it was accidental.
A fire started Monday morning in the attic of Gadsby’s Tavern, according to the City of Alexandria. The City charactered the blaze as a “small fire.” The museum’s sprinkler system discharged and the fire was quickly extinguished by the Alexandria Fire Department and City staff.
The Museum’s 1792 building, including Gadsby’s Tavern Restaurant, was affected by the water from the sprinkler system. City staff are following the Museum’s disaster plan to minimize damage to the building and its collection.
The Museum and the Restaurant will open to the public for regular operations on Tuesday, June 30; however, Tuesday evening dance classes at the Museum will be cancelled.
Gadsby’s Tavern is known as a historic treasure. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, it was the center of social and political life in Alexandria and the new Federal City of Washington. The tavern served as the premier gathering place for residents, including George Washington, and visitors to eat, drink, learn, and influence history. Gadsby’s Tavern Museum is located at 134 N. Royal St. in the heart of Old Town Alexandria.
Investigators are trying to figure out what caused an explosion at a Chesterfield hotel early Tuesday morning. The call came in around 4:30 a.m. for a fire alarm at the InTown Suites in the 11500-block of Green Spring Road, between Koger Center Blvd and Robious Road. Chesterfield County Fire and EMS tell us they found signs of an explosion, and some residents report the building shook.
Most people were asleep when it happened, but not Brendon Chandler. “Just a big explosion and then the window just ended up in the parking lot,” remembers Chandler. He was smoking a cigarette when all of a sudden in the room above his, “The window just shot right out!”
And, that’s when guests say chaos erupted. “I just heard the fire alarm go off and I heard a whole bunch of people running outside. The next thing you know, I’m waking up and just everybody’s going outside,” says resident David Rivenbark.
Chesterfield Fire says the explosion happened in a room on the third floor. The blown-out window and melted plastic from the fire was evident from the outside. That fire activated the room’s sprinkler system. Some second floor rooms sustained water damage from those sprinklers.
A Hazmat team was brought in and tests found no hazardous materials in the room, but investigators are calling the situation “suspicious” and say the room’s occupant was no where to be found. One guest told NBC12, she heard footsteps before the fire alarm went off.
“[Someone was] hightailing it down the hall. We’re right in front of the elevator near the stairwell, and I heard the stairwell door fly open and hit the wall,” she says. Now police want to talk to that person.
No one was injured by the explosion, but two hotel guests were later taken to the hospital for unrelated injuries. Police and the Fire Marshal’s Office continue to investigate.
Reporting on lives and property saved by fire sprinklers
