Monday, April 22, 2013
German Balladares, 56, and Sandra Balladares, 41, of Springfield were charged Friday.
Fire investigators with the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department charged a Springfield couple with intentionally setting a house fire in the Springfield area in 2008, according to a recent news release. German Balladares, 56, and Sandra Balladares, 41, of Springfield were charged with Virginia Code 18.2-77, burning or destroying a house or dwelling; and 18.2-80, with intent to defraud an insurance company or other person. The fire happened at about 12:20 p.m., June 7, 2008, at 7209 Neuman Street. Damage to the single family home was estimated at $75,000. While performing a fire attack, one firefighter was transported to INOVA Fairfax Hospital with a non-life threatening injury.
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Two adults, one youth, and a dog were displaced by last Thursday's fire.
The house fire in West Springfield last Thursday has been ruled accidental by Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department investigators. According to a news release from the department, an electrical power strip in the garage caused the fire at 8134 Carr Place. Units responded to the single-family house fire at approximately 9:50 a.m. Upon arrival, the release states firefighters encountered smoke and heavy fire coming from the attached garage and fire through the roof of the ranch style home. The heavy wind caused the fire to spread into the attic and then to the kitchen area of the home. It took firefighters 15 minutes to get the fire under control. Smoke alarms gave enough early warning for the occupants to escape the home unharmed. The …
Monday, February 4, 2013
Two adults and two children were displaced by the fire last Friday.
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department responded to a call at Morning Dew Court around 2:15 p.m. Friday where fire investigators now say an electrical panel started a house fire, according to a recent news release. The electrician who was sent to the Burn Center at Washington Hospital Center after a circuit breaker he was working on exploded sustained non-life threatening injuries. When fire and rescue units arrived, firefighters encountered heavy smoke and fire coming from the bottom level and through the roof of the two-story split level home along with strong and gusty winds while conducting an aggressive fire attack. A second alarm was called due to the heavy wind conditions and the rapid spreading of fire, bringing more than 60 …
Friday, January 18, 2013
The accidental fire, caused by a basement heating unit, began just before 6 a.m. Friday. There were no injuries.
A townhouse fire early Friday morning in the 6000 block of Ticonderoga Ct. in Burke has displaced five adults. The location is off of Burke Road near Burke Station Park. Firefighters were called to the two-story home at approximately 5:50 a.m., according to Fairfax County Fire and Rescue, in a news release. After they arrived, firefighters encountered smoke coming from the front door and second floor windows in the rear and front of the home. Firefighters got the fire under control in about 30 minutes, according to the county. Once the fire was under control, firefighters ensured the fire was extinguished using extensive overhaul and salvage operations, the news release states. The Incident Commander determined the fire to be accidental, …
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
The fire, which began in the basement of the home, caused an estimated $50,000 in damages.
Three adults have been displaced following a townhouse fire in Springfield last Thursday that caused an estimated $50,000 in damages. According to a press release from the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department, firefighters responded to a fire at a single family home located at 7408 Willshire Hunt Ct., at approximately 6:10 p.m. Firefighters reported smoke coming from the basement upon arrival and found the fire in a room in the basement near an electrical panel. Firefighters extinguished the fire using a hose line and a dry chemical fire extinguisher. The occupants attempted to extinguish the fire themselves before calling 911 and evacuating the home. The release further states there were no working smoke alarms in the home. There …
Monday, January 14, 2013
Grant McIntosh has served Fairfax County citizens for 50 years.
Grant McIntosh, chaplain for the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department will retire this coming March after serving the county for 50 years. This will be the second retirement in the 73-year-old, New Hampshire native's career. McIntosh first retired in February 1994 after serving as a firefighter for 30 years. "I've enjoyed it, and I have no regrets," McIntosh recently told Patch. "I really hate to go, but it's time to go away to do something else." McIntosh has served as chaplain for the fire department since August 1994 and is currently the associate pastor at Virginia Hills Baptist Church. During his career and service to the county, McIntosh became a member of the Critical Response Team and was a first responder when American …
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
A house fire on Lobelia Lane displaced one occupant.
The Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department responded to a call on Christmas Day around 10:25 p.m. in the Springfield area. Firefighters arrived in the 7900 block of Lobelia Lane to find smoke near the front door of the home. Dan Schmidt, spokesman for the department, said firefighters arrived on scene and were able to control and extinguish the fire within 15 minutes of their arrival. There was one occupant in the home at the time of the fire who was able to escape from a bedroom after being notified by an alarm monitoring company. The occupant escaped unharmed but was evaluated by paramedics on the scene, and she refused transport. No one else was in the home at the time of the incident. According to fire investigators, the fire was an…
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department responded to a small fire outside of a Springfield home.
Neighbors called and reported a fire outside of a home in the 7000 block of Chatham Street around 11:15 a.m. Sunday. Firefighters arrived on scene to find a small fire outside of an extension of the home and were able to control and extinguish the fire within 20 minutes, said Captain William Moreland. The fire didn't reach the major part of the house. The family was home at the time of the incident and was evacuated. There were no injuries reported due to the fire. The fire department is investigating the incident.
Friday, December 7, 2012
Firefighters responded to a house fire on Davis Field Lane in the Pohick community Wednesday night.
A gas-fed fire caused an estimated $150,000 in damages to a two-story home on Davis Field Lane in the Pohick community Wednesday night, according to a recent news release. Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department units responded to the call Wednesday around 7:50 p.m. Firefighters encountered smoke and fire coming from the left and rear sides of the two-story home upon arrival and immediately conducted fire attacks to bring the fire under control within 20 minutes. Neighbors, including Linda Nolte, called 911 at about 7:45 p.m.: "I heard a boom," she said. "I came outside and saw a line of fire along the side of the house. I saw a guy trying to put it out with a hose so I ran inside to find the phone." The fire and rescue team also …
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department offers tips to help residents avoid a fire this season.
Fire departments nationwide respond to about 250 home structure fires each year that involve Christmas trees, according to the National Fire Protection Association. And Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department crews don't want county residents to be among those fires that break out this holiday season. Crews recently distributed tips about Christmas tree safety to holiday tree lot vendors in the form of Christmas safety tags. Live trees don't cause fires, but they can easily catch fire due to candles, electrical problems or other heat sources. Here are the tips provided by the department: To print out a copy of the safety tag, visit the Fairfax County Emergency Information Blog.
Desiree Smith
11:08 pm on Monday, February 4, 2013
This is the family of my Father's co-worker. Lord I pray in the name of Jesus that you surround this family and the man who was burned with tremendous support, comfort and healing in the aftermath of this tragedy...fill the emptiness that comes with the loss of the things that can never be replaced. Thanks be to God for the safety and protection of the lives that were spared and send soothing for… more ›