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Fires destroy homes in Stafford, Spotsy
Fire destroy home in Garrisonville; blaze chases Spotsylvania couple from home
Date published: 6/29/2008
BY KAFIA HOSH A North Stafford family came home from dinner Friday night to find smoke billowing from their house, fire officials said. The family were able to rescue their dog from the burning home before firefighters arrived, said Assistant Fire and Rescue Chief Chuck Thompson, but the home in the St. George's Estates community off Garrisonville Road is " a complete loss." He estimated the home's worth at $300,000 or more. The pet was treated for smoke inhalation on the scene. No other injuries were reported.
Multiple units from the Stafford County Fire and Rescue Department and a group of Quantico Marine Corps Base firefighters responded to the rapidly moving blaze. The house was engulfed in flames by the time firefighters arrived at about 11:30 p.m., just minutes after being dispatched. "The fire had a substan-tial head start on them," Thompson said. Heat from the flames also melted the vinyl siding of homes adjacent to the burning house. Fire officials believe the blaze broke out in a study on the second floor of the home. They are still investigating the cause of the fire. In Spotsylvania County, fire officials are investigating the cause of a blaze that forced a couple to flee their home Thursday night, Deputy Fire Marshal Phil Sullivan said. The husband and wife awoke "coughing and choking from smoke" shortly before midnight, Sullivan said. Three units from Chancellor responded to the blaze at the log house at 14709 Spotswood Furnace Road. They were assisted by units from Richardsville in Culpeper County and Lake of the Woods in Orange County. A total of three tanker trucks were needed because the area has no hydrants, Sullivan said. The couple was taken to Mary Washington Hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation, Sullivan said. He did not know if they were hospitalized. Their conditions were not available yesterday. One firefighter also was taken to the hospital "as a precaution" after suffering from heat exhaustion, he said. Sullivan said the fire appears to have started in the basement, but the cause has not yet been determined. The house was destroyed, with the loss estimated at $325,000, he said. Sullivan said a smoke alarm downstairs was working, but the one upstairs was not. He urged all residents to check smoke alarms regularly to make sure they are in good condition. "If the one upstairs had been working, chances are they would have been woken up earlier instead of waking up choking in smoke," he said. Kafia Hosh: 540/735-1977
Date published: 6/29/2008
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