Cigarette to Blame for Lexington Park Apartment Fire

LEXINGTON PARK - 11/20/2008

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On Nov. 18, around 7:58 a.m., a fire was reported at 22027 Oxford Court in Lexington Park to 911 by a neighbor. Deputy State Fire Marshals determined that the accidental fire originated on a sofa in the living room of the apartment. The fire was the result of a cigarette that ignited the combustibles of the sofa. The fire was extinguished by an automatic fire sprinkler system prior to the arrival of the fire department. Damages to the apartment and contents are estimated to be less than two thousand dollars. Nineteen firefighters from Bay District responded to the one alarm fire. Dale Dean, the apartment occupant, was not home at the time of the fire. No injuries were reported. The automatic sprinkler system is credited with minimizing damages to the apartment complex.

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dako 11/20/2008 at 7:06 AM What do we always say...? Nothing good ever comes from smoking...ever... Reply to This Comment

NotBornHere 11/20/2008 at 3:19 PM Good News It is great that nobody was injured during this fire, including the firefighters from Bay District. This looks like a good example of why all new construction should be require to have sprinkler systems. $2000 in damage is peanuts compared to what could have happened. Next time this comes up for a vote let's all try and remember this. Reply to This Comment

X-Fusion 11/20/2008 at 9:12 PM Reply to NotBornHere: Well .. I think your a little late, that legislation passed awhile ago. Without Building Permits: In every jurisdiction where building permits are not issued, an approved, automatic sprinkler system must be installed in every multi-family residential dwelling, hotel, lodging or rooming house, or dormitory, on which construction began after July 1, 1990, and in every townhouse on which construction began after July 1, 1992. However, this provision does not apply to dwelling units which are not served by a public water supply system. With Building Permits: In jurisdictions where building permits are issued, an approved automatic sprinkler system must be installed in accordance with prescribed standards in each newly constructed dormitory, hotel, lodging or rooming house, and multi-family dwelling, for which the initial building permit was issued after July 1, 1990, and in each newly constructed townhouse for which the initial building permit was issued after July 1, 1992. This provision does not apply to dwelling units which are not served by a public water supply system.

NotBornHere 11/20/2008 at 11:17 PM Reply to NotBornHere: Not quite Close, but no cigar. Single family homes are not included. That is what most people live in. Montgomery County requires sprinklers for ALL residential construction. And you get a tax credit if you retro-fit your home. Worse case if you have a fire is a room that gets wet. Without sprinklers, you lose your house and maybe your family. And some people still won't vote for sprinklers and others think apartments are good enough.

X-Fusion 11/21/2008 at 9:02 AM Reply to NotBornHere: Huh? Why even put them in single family homes? Not only do you not have enough space for piping, but most people can get out of a single family home when the smoke detector goes off should one room go off. Sprinklers are designed to knock down the fire in bigger buildings to avoid an overall loss. If a fire gets started in a single family home, your not gonna salvage to much from it. The only thing that'll stop a single family house from burning up is common sense and knowledge.

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