City Had Been Warned About Rowhouse

Barrigatos said that seven people lived in the house and that they all paid rent. He said they were not related to each other.

D.C. law defines a rooming house as any building that provides sleeping accommodations for at least three people who are not related and who pay rent. Operating an unlicensed rooming house can carry up to a $2,000 fine, city officials said.

Inspectors posted notices on the house yesterday saying the building could not be occupied until they determine it is safe to enter.

A dozen fire, housing and zoning inspectors combed the house yesterday for potential violations. They also questioned the owner and two of the residents who showed up to see what was happening.

"We are taking what occurred very seriously," Argo said. "We essentially did a floor-to-ceiling inspection."

D.C. Council member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1), whose staff member had e-mailed the complaint about the property in June, said residents in his ward have told him about dozens of properties that they believe are unlicensed rooming houses that need to be inspected.

He said that the D.C. Department of Regulatory Affairs was doing a poor job of investigating such sites and that future accidents could occur.

"This is an agency that really needs to be held accountable," Graham said. "They really need to launch an initiative on illegal rooming houses."