Vienna Woman Dies in Early Morning House Fire

A woman died early this morning in a Vienna house fire, Fairfax County fire officials said, but two men fled the house safely after the wail of a smoke detector alerted them to the blaze.

The rear of the modest, single-story house in the 300 block of Plum Street was destroyed by the fire, which was reported about 4:30 a.m., said Lt. Willie Bailey, a county fire department spokesman. A dog who was inside the house was also killed.

The name of the dead woman was not immediately released, and Bailey said he did not yet know her age, the ages of the men who survived or how they were related to each other. The two men were in the basement, where the smoke detector was located, Bailey said. The woman was apparently on the first floor.

Bailey emphasized the importance of having working smoke detectors at home. "If that wouldn't have activated, we don't know what would have happened," he said.