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Fairfax County fire investigators are working to determine what caused three fires reported within a week in Annandale, Bailey’s Crossroads and McLean. No injuries were reported in any of the incidents.
The latest fire broke out shortly after midnight on Wednesday, March 19, at a single-family house in the 6600 block of Locust Way in Annandale.
Firefighters dispatched at 12:13 a.m. arrived to find heavy flames throughout the house. Crews attacked the fire, placed ladders against the home and searched every floor.
The blaze was brought under control quickly with assistance from a City of Alexandria fire engine and truck. The house appeared to be empty, so no evacuation was necessary. Neither civilians nor firefighters were injured.
Investigators have not determined what started the fire.
A separate investigation remains underway after a commercial building caught fire March 13 in the 5600 block of Leesburg Pike in Bailey’s Crossroads.
Responding units encountered flames and smoke coming from the building’s first floor. Fire departments from Arlington and Alexandria assisted Fairfax County crews, and no injuries were reported.
Fast response limits preserve fire
County officials also recognized the response to a March 12 fire at Scott’s Run Nature Preserve in McLean.
The fire burned roughly one-third of an acre within the 336-acre preserve beside the Potomac River. Dranesville District Supervisor Jimmy Bierman said it could have caused significant damage to the county-owned natural area.
Fairfax County Park Authority manager Michael Cardona noticed smoke, traced it to its source and found several trees already burning. His alert brought firefighters from McLean, Vienna and Reston to the preserve.
The fire was contained while still relatively small. Its cause also remains under investigation.
The incident occurred during Virginia’s spring wildfire season, when the state’s 4 p.m. Burn Law prohibits most outdoor burning before 4 p.m. through April 30.
Scott’s Run Nature Preserve has been closed since Feb. 17 while contractors clear a blockage from a wastewater siphon system. Public access is expected to resume sometime in April.