Burtonsville House Fire

On Monday, April 18 at approximately 12:27 p.m., MCFRS units responded to 1900 block of Mayflower Drive for a report of a house on fire. Units arrived on scene to find a two-story single family home with heavy fire in the rear of the home.

All occupants of the home had exited safely and were standing in front of the home when firefighters arrived. Firefighters went to work and were able to initially knock down the exterior fire and extinguish the bulk of the fire quickly which prevented further extension into the inside of the home. The fire had already extended into the attic area upon arrival.

At the time of the fire two occupants were in the basement of the home when they heard someone knocking on the front door. Upon going upstairs and opening the door, a passerby indicated that the back of the house was on fire. Both occupants quickly exited through the front door with the family dog. The passerby, a neighbor, had already notified 911. More than 65 firefighters responded on the call which included a RID and Task Force. 

Fire Investigators were called to the scene to conduct and origin and cause investigation. One of the occupants stated he was a smoker and only smoked outside in back of the house and used a container for the discarded cigarettes.  Investigators determined that the fire started in the container next to the box bay window from a discarded cigarette. The cause of the fire is listed as ACCIDENTAL.  

There were no injuries to civilian or fire and rescue personnel. Damages were estimated to be $200,000.00 to the structure and $100,000.00 to the contents. Four adults and one dog were displaced as a result. Six chickens perished in the fire.

When smoking outside MCFRS, along with its partners in safety at NFPA and the US Fire Administration, recommend the following:

• Do not discard cigarettes in vegetation such as mulch, potted plants or landscaping, peat moss, dried grass, leaves and other things that could easily ignite.

• Put your cigarette out in an ashtray or bucket with sand. Use ashtrays with a wide base so they won’t tip over and start a fire.