Three Firefighters Injured in Silver Spring Blaze

Three Montgomery County firefighters were slightly injured early Friday while battling a two-alarm townhouse fire in Silver Spring that left two families homeless, a fire department spokesman said.

The firefighters sustained "minor burn injuries" and were transported to a local burn center, said Capt. Oscar Garcia, a spokesman for Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service. The townhouse occupants escaped unharmed, he said.

The blaze was reported at 4:44 a.m. at the rear of a three-level townhouse at 2025 Featherwood Street in the Iverleigh subdivision of Burnsville in the Silver Spring area, Garcia said. Upon arrival, firefighters found a fire burning on the rear deck and extending to all three levels of the townhouse, as well as the attic.

After fighting the fire for about 20 minutes, firefighters were pulled out when roof trusses began collapsing, Garcia said. It took a total of about 45 minutes to control the blaze, he said. A townhouse next door also sustained significant damage, and utilities were turned off, he said.

Four adults and two children -- 5-year-old twins -- left the end-unit townhouse safely, as did the family next door, Garcia said. Red Cross officials arrived to assist the displaced families with food, shelter and clothing.

Fire investigators were trying to determine the cause of the blaze, which brought as many as 75 firefighters to the scene.

In addition to the Featherwood Street fire, two other house fires were reported early Friday in Montgomery County, but they were relatively minor, and firefighters were able to extinguish them quickly, Garcia said. No injuries were reported in the two other fires.