WOODBRIDGE, Va. — A house fire spread to a nearby sports center in Woodbridge, leaving it a total loss on Thursday evening.
According to Prince William County Fire, crews were called to a home on Devil's Reach Road shortly before 4 p.m. for a two-alarm fire on the outside of the home. While working to extinguish the flames, firefighters say brush and other combustibles had ignited and spread the fire to the Kids Choice Sports building on Sport and Health Drive.
The sports building fire was declared a three-alarm fire just after 4 p.m. There were not a lot of people inside the building when it caught fire.
According to Prince William County Fire Assistant Chief Matt Smolsky, the house and sports complex are roughly 100 feet away from each other. The wind not only caused the flames to spread but created conditions that made it more difficult to extinguish the fire. The brush between the two fires worked as fuel for the flames.
The fire left excessive damage to the home and Smolsky says the sports center appears to be a total loss.
Initially, fire crews reported no injuries as a result of the blaze. However, early Friday, the fire department confirmed one person was hospitalized with injuries described as not life threatening. The person hurt was an employee at the Kids Choice Sports Center.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Multiple-alarm fires are terms used to classify the seriousness of a fire. The higher levels indicate that more crews or resources are needed to help extinguish the flames. At one point around 80 firefighters were working on putting the fire out.