WASHINGTON — DC Fire and EMS firefighters battled a massive house fire early Wednesday in Northwest D.C. The two-alarm fire was the third of the night. Firefighters estimated between all of them about 70 people were displaced from their homes.
Firefighters responded to the 2601 31st Street NW just before 1 a.m. for a fire at a large three-story home under renovation. The flames extended to homes on either side, and caused some damage. The home eventually collapsed from the blaze.
Firefighters worked for hours to bring the fire under control, saying it was challenging to extinguish because there was a steep hill behind the home.
One firefighter was sent to the hospital for evaluation but no other injuries were reported. Three residents from the nearby homes were displaced in this fire.
DC Fire and EMS Public Information Officer Vito Maggiolo the investigation into the cause of the fire will be delayed due to the severity of the damage to the building.
The fire could be seen for miles away, but Maggiolo said no one was seriously hurt.
"It was spectacular in nature...but the bottom line is no one was seriously injured. One firefighter with a minor injury, so I think we've done well here," Maggiolo said.
According to Redfin, the 5-bedroom, 8-bath, 7,800-square-foot mansion was built in 1928. It was last sold in 2001 for $4.45 million, but is currently estimated to be worth more than $8 million.
The northwest D.C. fire follows two others in D.C. Tuesday, which displaced a total of 65 people.
One of the fires happened in the 1000 block of Mt Olivet Road, NE. Firefighters arrived to find a 4 story apartment building with fire coming from the basement. One firefighter was injured in the blaze, everyone else made it out safely. The cause of that fire is under investigation.
Fire crews also responded to a 2-alarm fire on G Street Southeast. Four people were rescued by firefighters with a ladder truck, and video shared by DC's fire chief shows children being tossed from a window to safety.
The Red Cross is helping everyone impacted in both of the earlier fires.