Fire officials say an early morning fire last Saturday displaced six people and caused approximately $90,000 damage to a Fairfax home. Units from Fairfax County Fire and Rescue and the City of Fairfax Fire Department were dispatched, July 11, at 12:09 a.m., to the 10800 block of Santa Clara Drive.
Six occupants were home when the fire began. One smelled smoke and, investigating further, observed smoke coming from the basement door. This person alerted the others and they all evacuated.
First-arriving units saw smoke coming from the front door of the two-story, single-family house. Crews worked quickly to locate and extinguish the blaze in the basement. Fire investigators determined the fire was accidental and started in the basement utility room. They saw the cause was an electrical event involving an extension cord that was powering a treadmill.