Carrington Court Effort and Fire Fatality ID

MEDIA CONTACT: Mark E. Brady, Chief Spokesperson, 240-508-7930

Firefighters returned to the community that is grieving the loss of a young girl after a fire consumed her house yesterday. They were not there this time to fight a fire they were there to prevent fires and injuries from occurring.

Fire Investigators determined the cause of the fire at 6330 Carrington Court is “accidental” and attributed to an overloaded electrical component. It appears that a window air conditioner was being powered through a residential style extension cord and a power strip. Manufacturers guidelines for these types of large appliances call for them to be plugged directly into a wall plug and extension cords or power strips should never be used. This is true for any large appliance. An extension cord is not capable of handling the electric load pulled from large appliance, will overheat and cause a fire.

Firefighters armed with smoke alarms, home escape planning information and knowledge of yesterdays fire cause went door-to-door along Carrington Court and Booker Drive visiting with members of the community. Firefighters were able to discuss the fire and it’s cause and used this opportunity to check on window AC units. Smoke alarms were checked and if needed, a new alarm was installed. There were several instances where firefighters found the AC units using an extension cord or power strip. With the owners consent, firefighters corrected the issue before leaving the home.

The fire on Wednesday, August 8, occurred just after 4:30 pm. Three occupants were in the home on the second floor taking a nap when the fire broke out. A 24 year-old man awakened to a sounding smoke alarm and tried to reach his 5-year-old daughter and 15-year-old-brother, however, the fire that started in the living room on the first floor had already extended upstairs. Intense heat and thick smoke filled the second floor and he was forced to use a second floor window as a means of egress. Firefighters arrived and rescued the 2 occupants from the second floor and immediately initiated treatment including CPR.

Despite the very best effort afforded the young girl by firefighters, a police officer, paramedics and hospital staff she succumbed to her injuries around 8:00 pm last night. She is identified as Jade Buffaloe, date of birth May 13, 2007, of the Carrington Court address.

Her 24-year-old father and 15-year-old uncle remain in Critical Condition at Medstar Washington Hospital Center Burn Unit suffering from a combination of burns and smoke inhalation injuries.

If there is anything that can be taken away from this tragic incident is that everyone should:

· Have working smoke alarms on every level of your home, test them monthly.
· Plan and practice a home escape that includes 2 ways out of every room and a safe place to meet outside.
· Always follow manufacturers instructions on appliances, especially the areas that provide items of warning and cautions.

If any citizen or business would like a firefighter to come to their house to inspect smoke alarms, CO detectors and receive information on fire safety items, including escape plans please call our Safety First – Everyone Goes Home program at 301-864-SAFE (7233).