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Improperly discarded ashes ignited a fire at an Alexandria-area home Sunday morning, causing an estimated $259,338 in damage but leaving residents and firefighters uninjured.
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue crews responded around 8 a.m. on October 12 to the 5800 block of Queens Gate Court. They arrived to find flames coming from the attached garage of a single-family home and quickly extinguished the fire.
No one was home when the blaze began. A neighbor spotted fire behind the house and called 911. Officials said the home had working smoke alarms.
Investigators from the Office of the Fire Marshal traced the fire to a plastic trash can placed beside the garage’s exterior wall. They determined that improperly discarded ashes caused the blaze.
The Red Cross offered assistance to the residents, who accepted it.
Hot ashes can remain dangerous for days
Fire officials urged residents never to discard ashes from fireplaces, wood stoves or fire pits in combustible containers such as plastic or paper bags, cardboard boxes or plastic trash cans.
Ashes should instead be placed in a lidded metal container and soaked with water to ensure they are cool. The container should remain outside, away from the home and other combustible materials, preferably on a noncombustible surface—not on a deck, porch or inside a garage.
Because ashes can retain heat for several days, officials recommend taking these precautions even after waiting days to remove them.