A fire in an empty apartment at the 5800 block of Oakview Gardens Drive in Bailey’s Crossroads took place Saturday around 3:30 p.m that left five people displaced and caused $20,000 of property damage. No civilian or firefighter injuries were reported but Red Cross assistance was requested and accepted.
The accidental fire started in a bedroom closet when combustible materials came in contact with an unattended open flame device, Fire Investigators would later learn. But at the time the apartment’s three smoke alarms weren’t working so other tenants were unaware of the fire until they saw smoke coming from the apartment and promptly called 9-1-1.
They received a response from Fairfax County Fire and Rescue, the City of Alexandria Fire Department and Arlington County Fire Department. Units arrived on on the scene and identified smoke coming from the front terrace area of the thee-story complex. Firefighters quickly located and extinguished a small fire in one of the apartments.
