Prince George's Firefighters Called to 5 Residential Fires in Three Days

The Prince George’s County Fire/Emergency Medical Services Department has battled five residential fires since Wednesday, says the department's blog.

Since Nov. 13, three single-family homes and two apartment building fires have been extinguished by firefighters. There is no common element or connection between any of these incidents, fire officials said.

Here's the timeline for the blazes the department responded to this week, courtesy of the department's blog.

• Firefighters responded to a house fire in the 12500 block of Molly Berry Road just before 3 p.m Wednesday to find fire showing from the garage side of the one-story house, extending into the attic. The fire was extinguished in about 30 minutes. 

One resident was taken to an area hospital for a check-up. Three adults and two children were displaced from the home. The cause of the accidental fire is attributed to the misuse of an oven to provide heat to the home, authorities said. Damage is estimated at $80,000.

• Just after 4 p.m. Wednesday, firefighters from the District Heights area responded to a report of a fire at a three-story apartment building at 6561 Pennsylvania Ave. Responders saw smoke showing from the second floor; a bedroom fire was quickly located and extinguished. An unattended candle is responsible for the fire, which caused $10,000 damage.

Two adults and two children were displaced. No injuries were reported, but one resident was taken to an area hospital for a check-up. 

• No injuries were reported Thursday when cooking was left unattended and a fire began in a house in the 1200 block of Fortside Driveway in Fort Washington. Firefighters and EMS units arrived to find fire and smoke coming from the rear of the two-story house. 

Damage was estimated at $175,000. The family was displaced.  

• Just before 11 p.m. Thursday, firefighters from the Morningside area were called to a reported house fire in the 6500 block of Woodland Road. The vacant and unoccupied single-family structure had fire showing from the front of the house. The fire was quickly extinguished. 

Damage was estimated at $80,000 and the fire is under investigation. No injuries were reported.

• Most recently, firefighters were called to 6431 Pennsylvania Ave. in Forestville at 3:30 a.m. Friday to a fire on the top floor of a three-story apartment building.  A precautionary second alarm was sounded, however, firefighters had the bulk of the fire knocked down within 15 minutes of arrival.

Several families were displaced by the fire. The occupant of the apartment where the fire began was taken to an area hospital for an unspecified illness. Investigators have determined the fire is accidental, with extenuating circumstances.

Damage is estimated at $150,000. No civilian or firefighter injuries were reported.