Fire damaged a Falls Church house yesterday afternoon.
Fire damaged a Falls Church house yesterday afternoon.
According to Captain Willie Bailey, a spokesperson for the Fairfax County Fire Department, firefighters were called out to the house on the 6000 block of Columbia Pike at around 5 p.m.
Firefighters were able to respond in less than two minutes because the house was down the street from a fire station.
“As (firefighters) walked out over to the ramp of the fire station to get into their equipment, smoke was billowing in the area,” Bailey said. “When they arrived on the scene, they saw heavy fires showing from the front and the rear of the home.”
Firefighters made their way into the house and determined that the fire had started in the basement and made its way up to the first floor. They also determined that the fire was a gas fire, and had to turn the gas off before extinguishing the flames fully.
Bailey said firefighters were on the scene for 40 minutes. During their search of the home, they discovered two pets, a dog and a fish, had died in the fire. No residents were home at the time of the fire.
“The home owners are receiving assistance from Red Cross,” Bailey said. “The house is not livable at this time.”
According to a press release from the Fairfax County Fire Department, investigators determined that the cause of the fire was an unattended candle. Damages to the house are estimated at $200,000.
