fire department

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington Gets Best View of Fireworks — On a hazy night, Arlington — particularly Rosslyn — had the best view of the expanded D.C. fireworks. Smoke obscured the viewing for many parts of the District. [Twitter, Twitter, Raw Story]

JBG Trying to Lure Big Tech to Arlington — “JBG Smith Properties CEO Matt Kelly recently met with “a handful” of big West Coast tech firms in a bid to entice them to come to National Landing now that Amazon.com Inc. has chosen the area for its second headquarters.” [Washington Business Journal]

Police Chase Ends in Arlington — A high-speed police chase along I-66 ended in Arlington, near the N. Glebe Road exit. Virginia State Police say a woman fled from police at speeds of up to 120 mph while her three children were in the car. [WJLA, Twitter]

A Modest Proposal for Arlington — In a letter to the editor published by the Arlington Sun Gazette, a man apparently upset by the renaming of Washington-Lee High School to Washington-Liberty suggests also renaming Arlington “Amazon’s bitch.” [InsideNova]

Ebbin Cast as NRA’s ‘Boogeyman’ — “[State Sen. Adam] Ebbin, when told of [state Sen. Bryce] Reeves’s remarks at the town hall, said he never made any of the comments attributed to him. ‘Apparently I’m a radical homosexual who’s misquoted,’ Ebbin said sarcastically.” [Washington Post]

Checking Car Seats in Arlington — Writing about the new Virginia law requiring rear-facing car seats for children under two and below a certain weight, the Arlington County Fire Department noted on social media: “ACFD no longer does child seat safety inspections. Arlington County Police Department offers regular inspections to ensure the child seat is safely installed and secured in your vehicle.” [Twitter]

Warner Highlights Sept. 11th Memorial Trail — “U.S. Senators Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) are working together to further honor the heroes of September 11th, 2001. In a bipartisan resolution, Senators Toomey and Warner highlight the significance of the September 11th National Memorial Trail,” which runs through Arlington. [Press Release]

Photo courtesy Dennis Dimick/Twitter

Man Seriously Hurt in Early Morning Fire

By ARLnow.com
1/4

A man was burned and seriously injured in an early morning fire in the Aurora Highlands neighborhood Tuesday.

The fire broke out in a detached, two story garage and apartment on the 2300 block of S. Hayes Street. Firefighters arriving on scene around 2:30 a.m. found heavy smoke and flames coming from the structure, but were able to eventually extinguish the fire.

One man was transported to a burn center in serious condition and a firefighter was taken to a local hospital for dehydration, according to the Arlington County Fire Department. The main house on the property did not catch fire, but the Red Cross is assisting its two occupants, ACFD said.

Firefighters from Arlington, Alexandria, Reagan National Airport and Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall all helped battle the flames.

Photos via Arlington County Fire Department

Smoke Fills Ballston Metro Station Tunnel, Causing Delays

By Airey
1/5

(Updated at 9:27 a.m.) Commuters on Metro’s Orange and Silver lines faced minor delays this morning after smoke filled the tunnels of the Ballston station.

A Metro spokeswoman told ARLnow that a train suffered a brake malfunction and offloaded passengers at the station.

“The fans will be turned on and the smoke will dissipate,” said the spokesman. He added he not aware of any health concerns for those who breathed in the smoke.

As of 9 a.m. the gray smoke was still visible and smelled of burning rubber, but crowds has dissipated and first responders had left the scene.

First responders were dispatched to the scene around 8:45 a.m. this morning to reports of smoke filling the tunnel.

Metro-tracking bot Metro Hero Alerts reported that a train went out of service at the Ballston station at 8:43 a.m. this morning and that riders disembarked the train at the station.

https://twitter.com/metroheroalerts/status/1146036674255867905?s=20

Outside, one commuter ditched Metro and was waiting on an Uber to get to work.

“I could smell it going down,” Ashley McMahon said of the smoke as she walked down the escalator to the tunnel earlier that morning. “There was a lot of people.”

Photo courtesy of Ashley McMahon

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Talento Selected as School Board Chair — “The Arlington School Board held its annual organizational meeting for the 2019-20 school year and elected Tannia Talento as Chair and Monique O’Grady as Vice Chair. The terms for the new Chair and Vice Chair begin immediately and will continue until June 30, 2020.” [Arlington Public Schools]

Which Amazon Units Are Coming to HQ2 — “We’re still a pretty long way from knowing what the estimated 25,000 workers at Amazon.com Inc.’s second headquarters will do, but a top company executive has named three units that will be represented in Arlington: Alexa, Amazon Web Services and Amazon’s consumer division.” [Washington Business Journal]

Private Sector Job Growth in Arlington — Arlington County’s private employment grew by nearly 20,000 jobs, or about 17%, between 2010 and 2018, according to the D.C. Policy Center. [Twitter]

Arlington Winners at the RAMMYs — Ambar in Clarendon captured the Service Program of the Year award at the 2019 RAMMYs over the weekend. The distinction of Chef of the Year at the D.C. area restaurant industry award show, meanwhile, went to Kyle Bailey of The Salt Line, which is opening a location in Ballston. [Washington Business Journal]

APS Testing New Visitor System — “Summertime will bring a security pilot program to a number of Arlington’s public schools, with a full roll-out of the initiative slated throughout the system in the fall. The new visitor-management system to be tested at five sites during the summer will require visitors, volunteers and contractors to provide specific photo identification, and their identities will then be checked against state and federal sex-offender registries.” [InsideNova]

ACFD Holds ‘Camp Heat’ — “Camp Heat, put on by the Arlington County Fire Department, concluded Friday night. During this week-long immersion into firefighting, campers learned everything from running hoses to breaking down doors to working on water rescue techniques. All the campers are young women, 15 to 18 years old.” [WJLA]

Flickr pool photo by Erinn Shirley

UPDATED: Woman Killed by Falling Tree Limb Along Walter Reed Drive

By ARLnow.com
1/3

(Updated at 5:35 p.m. on June 30) A woman was killed by a falling tree limb on the 2600 block of S. Walter Reed Drive this afternoon.

The incident happened shortly before 2 p.m. Initial reports suggest a portion of a tree fell and landed on an older adult woman, who was knocked unconscious and trapped underneath.

Arlington County Fire Department spokesman Capt. Ben O’Bryant tells ARLnow a large tree limb fell and struck the woman on the bike path that runs along the street. First responders freed the woman and rushed her to a nearby hospital with serious injuries, O’Bryant said, but she later died at the hospital.

Arlington County Police are asking anyone who may have been in the area and witnessed what happened to call 703-558-2222.

Thursday evening, Arlington County released a statement about the incident, which happened on county-owned parkland, offering condolences to the woman and her family.

Arlington County is heartbroken that a community member was struck by a falling tree limb in a park this afternoon.  Our condolences and thoughts are with the family.

The incident occurred around 1:45 p.m. when a woman was walking along a path in Lucky Run Park. Apparently, a tree limb fell from an 80-foot oak and struck her. Firefighters responded to the scene and transported her to a local hospital with serious injuries. She was later pronounced deceased.

Safety is our number one priority. The County is investigating further to determine as many details of what happened as possible.

A resident tells ARLnow the woman lived nearby and had recently retired.

Map via Google Maps

Video: Paper Shredding Truck Fire at County Office Building

By ARLnow.com

A box truck that provides mobile paper shredding services caught fire at an Arlington County office building Wednesday morning.

Firefighters managed to extinguish the small blaze in the truck’s shredder before the flames could spread, as seen in a fire department video below.

The truck was parked outside 2110 Washington Blvd in the Penrose neighborhood, according to scanner traffic. The building contains offices for Arlington’s Dept. of Human Services and Arlington Public Schools.

https://twitter.com/arlingtonvafd/status/1143912926614474757?s=21

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Overturned Vehicle on GW Parkway — “The northbound George Washington Parkway was closed [past Key Bridge] during Tuesday morning’s rush hour after a vehicle overturned, authorities said… The southbound side of the parkway was also affected.” [Washington Post]

Transgender Policy Discussion at School Board Meeting — “Students, parents and advocates packed the [Arlington school] board meeting to loudly back [a transgender non-discrimination] plan, waving miniature LGBT and transgender pride flags to signal agreement with the nearly three dozen speakers who proclaimed support… Supporters on Tuesday vastly outnumbered those who turned out to protest the plans.” [Washington Post]

Good Samaritan Murder Trial — “The Good Samaritan who intervened to try to stop a sexual assault in Arlington last fall was beaten so badly it was impossible to tell what killed him, a medical examiner testified Monday.” [Washington Post]

Feds Giving Grant to DCA — “Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Washington Dulles International both will see millions in funding from the FAA for improvements. DCA is slated to get $4,921,500 in funding.” [WUSA 9, Press Release]

ACFD Chief Battalion Honored — “Chief Wesley was recognized at the event for being the #first #AfricanAmericanWoman Battalion Chief not only in @ArlingtonVA but also the entire Northern Virginia region.” [Twitter]

Amazon HQ2 Jobs Update — There are currently 63 positions listed on Amazon’s HQ2 jobs page, many of them technical. Recently listed job titles include “Region Build Technical Program Manager,” “Full Stack Software Development Engineer” and “Systems Development Manager, Cloud Computing Operations.” [Amazon]

APS Teacher Honored After Saving Choking Student

By Airey

An Arlington teacher received a Citizens Award after saving third-grade student Grant, who was choking during lunch.

The Arlington County Fire Department and Arlington Public Schools recognized Jamestown Elementary teacher Jaimie Sapp last week after Grant’s father Roger had contacted the department to say how impressed he was by her quick actions.

“She was at lunch on Monday with his class and they’re all talking and eating and he choked on a piece of food,” said Roger, who asked not to use his last name to protect their family’s privacy. “And it completely blocked his airway and he couldn’t breathe.”

Roger told ARLnow today (Monday) that a week beforehand his family had talked with Grant about what to do if he was choking and taught him the universal choking sign.

As a result, Grant knew to hold his hands around his neck when he choked during lunch, and his fellow students started screaming to the teacher for help. Sapp rushed over and performed the chest thrusts of the Heimlich Maneuver — but it didn’t work.

Then Sapp tried the maneuver’s back slaps and was able to dislodge the food choking Grant.

“Thank goodness she knew what to do,” said Roger. “It’s hard to describe the feeling of hearing your child was in peril and you weren’t around to do anything about it.”

“We thank Jaimie for recognizing that the student was choking and taking quick action to save the student,” said APS spokesman Frank Bellavia. “We are extremely grateful to her.”

“We had the honor of recognizing Ms. Sapp and students from Jamestown [Elementary] today for their heroic actions that saved a student’s life,” said Arlington County Fire Department in a tweet. “For identifying there was an emergency and springing into action she was given a citizens award.”

Roger said the experience was a reminder of how rusty his family was on other first-aid procedures like CPR, and he’s now planning to organize a group CPR certification course with the Jamestown Elementary PTA.

Bellavia said all APS teachers are required to learn basic first-aid and CPR, including the Heimlich Maneuver.

During today’s phone call with ARLnow, Roger said the incident was no big deal for Grant, who was spending his Monday morning — on the first week of summer break — biking.

“We’re hugging him a lot more than we would normally,” Roger said of Sapp. “We’re just very, very happy and proud of her.”

Image via APS/Twitter

JUST IN: Kitchen Fire at Courthouse Condo Building

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 1:50 p.m.) Arlington County and Ft. Myer firefighters are on scene of a fire at the Courthouse Crossings condo complex in the Courthouse neighborhood.

Firefighters were dispatched to the condo building, at 1410 N. Scott Street, around 1:15 p.m. Initial reports suggest that a fire broke out in a resident’s kitchen but was extinguished by a sprinkler system before it could spread.

No injuries were reported.

File photo

BREAKING: Man Dies in Apartment Fire Near Ballston

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 1:30 p.m.) One person has died after a fire in Ashton Heights, near Ballston, Tuesday morning.

First responders were dispatched to a garden-style apartment on the 3800 block of 5th Street N at 7:44 a.m. today where they found an unconscious man in the living room, the Arlington County Fire Department said in a statement at 1:30 p.m. today.

“There was no fire evident when firefighters arrived, but the reporting party told firefighters it smelled like something was burning in the building,” said the department. “Firefighters on the back of the building identified the source of the smell as a first-floor apartment. They forced entry and found a small fire on the stove at the rear of the apartment that was quickly extinguished.”

The department said firefighters located the apartment’s smoke detector — but the early warning device lacked a battery.

By the time they found the man, the apartment had filled with smoke, department spokesman Capt. Ben O’Bryant told ARLnow at 11:15 a.m.

The man was rushed to a local hospital as medics performed CPR, according to O’Bryant. He was later pronounced dead.

Authorities are not yet releasing the man’s name, as they work to notify next of kin. He was only identified as an adult male.

As is standard for a fatal fire, the fire marshal’s office and Arlington County Police are jointly investigating the cause of the fire and the man’s death.

See the full department press release below:

At 7:44 a.m. on Tue., June 11, firefighters from the Arlington County Fire Department and Ft. Myer Fire Department, and officers from the Arlington County Police Department, were dispatched for a possible structure fire at a two-story apartment building in the 3800 block of Fifth Street North.

There was no fire evident when firefighters arrived, but the reporting party told firefighters it smelled like something was burning in the building. Firefighters on the back of the building identified the source of the smell as a first-floor apartment. They forced entry and found a small fire on the stove at the rear of the apartment that was quickly extinguished.

Upon searching the residence, firefighters located an unconscious adult male in the living room. The occupant was immediately removed from the apartment and resuscitative efforts initiated by Fire/EMS personnel. Responders continued to treat the patient en route to the hospital where the patient was later pronounced deceased.

The fire was contained to the room of origin and did not affect any other residences in the building. There was a smoke detector installed in the apartment, but it did not contain a battery.

Investigators from ACFD Fire Prevention Office and ACPD responded and are working collaboratively to investigate the fire. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

The identity of the deceased is being withheld pending notification of next of kin. The cause of death will be determined by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. No further information is available at this time.

Photo via ACFD/Twitter

Police Investigating Serious Motorcycle Crash on Route 50

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 2:50 p.m.) The ramp from eastbound Route 50 to the Roosevelt Bridge is closed due to a serious crash involving a motorcycle.

The exact circumstances around the crash are unclear, but initial reports suggest a motorcyclist lost control and crashed into a guardrail around 12:40 p.m., potentially suffering broken bones and other injuries.

The rider was transported via ambulance to a local trauma center in critical condition, according to Arlington County Fire Department spokesman Capt. Ben O’Bryant. Arlington County Police later clarified that the rider’s condition was critical, but with non-life-threatening injuries.

Map via Google Maps

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