Hazards lurking in basements and kitchens can cause fires, Fairfax County fire marshal warns
What appears to be a normal suburban house could be hiding a dangerous powder keg ready to explode. Time after time, Captain Jim Sobota of the Fairfax County fire marshal’s office, has discovered unsafe quantities of gasoline, propane, and hazardous chemicals lurking in basements and garages—and posing significant fire hazards.
Sobota described his office’s responsibilities – investigating fires and dealing with hazardous materials – and shared some photos of fires in the Annandale area at a recent meeting of community association leaders at the Mason District Government Center.
At one point, Sobota was on an inspection tour checking out multiple occupancy houses with the Fairfax County strike team, when he heard one of his colleagues scream, “everybody get out now!” He had found a makeshift kitchen with a camp stove attached to a propane tank. It had a loose valve and was ready to explode. In an emergency situation like that one, Sobota says, “the fire marshal has the authority to enforce the law right on the spot” and arrest violators.
He said one of the most valuable members of the fire marshal’s team is Vanda, a canine who found clothes buried in a field leading to the resolution of a brutal murder in Loudoun County. Vanda also cracked a string of arsons in D.C. a few years ago when she found a pair of military pants with the arsonist’s DNA that enabled investigators to identify him through military records.
3 responses to “Hazards lurking in basements and kitchens can cause fires, Fairfax County fire marshal warns”
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An interesting but slightly confusing article. When I began reading it, I was ready to hear about "unsafe quantities of gasoline, propane, and hazardous chemicals lurking in basements and garages". But only 4 of the 12 examples have anything whatsoever to do with gas or chemicals. It would be good to know if that really is a major problem. Based on the examples, it looks like most fires are either 'operator error' (deep fried potatos/kerosene heater next to gas) or something that a normal person would not know to look for (malfunctioning microwave/many electrical fires). I don't know what you can do about 'operator error' (do people really not know the dangers of open flames and gasoline)? The electrical fires will probably be common in this area with the older houses. I had a hot circuit that almost caused a fire a couple years ago that was fortunately discovered in time.
All in all, an intersting post.
My first question is: Were these fires caused by the unsanitary and uneducated lifestyles of the Hisssssspanic goya illegal aliens and jackpot baby/adults who've destroyed Annadale?
While all comments are welcome, comments expressing bigoted viewpoints are not productive and to not contribute to positive community dialogue.