A woman is dead after a house fire in Bladensburg, Maryland.
Prince George's County's fire department was called to the 5200 block of Varnum Street at about 4:45 p.m. and were on the scene within minutes. Officials say the fire started at about 4:30 p.m. on the first floor and moved fast.
Four people, including the woman who died, were inside the house. The other three were able to make it out unharmed.
Multiple residents tried to get to the woman, who was trapped, but could not because of the fire conditions, officials said. Firefighters entered the house and found her critical condition, and she was later pronounced dead.
We've got the news you need to know to start your day. Sign up for the First & 4Most morning newsletter — delivered to your inbox daily. >Sign up here.
“This is a tragedy,” said Chief Tyrone Collington Sr., with the Bladensburg Police Department. “This is a tragic loss at this time of year. This is the holiday season. We have someone that won’t see Christmas, that won’t see 2025 come in.”
“The challenge was, the fire was well advanced when they arrived on scene,” said Alan Doubleday with Prince George’s County Fire and EMS. “They had heavy fire coming out of two windows in the home. Firefighters did an aggressive interior attack, and on their search, they unfortunately located the adult female."
Local
Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
The victim's name and age were not immediately released.
The Red Cross was called in to assist the survivors, and fire investigators were on the scene to find the origin and cause of the fire. While the investigation continues, fire officials say the damage is so bad it may take a while before they can pinpoint the exact cause.
News4 sends breaking news stories by email. Go here to sign up to get breaking news alerts in your inbox.
Officials offered words of warning as more winter weather rolls in:
“This time of year, we really have an uptick in working fire dispatches,” Doubleday said. “So, a lot of times you’re heating in your home is a challenge this time of year, so folks will go towards electric space heaters. Very dangerous. Keep them at least three feet away from anything flammable, make sure that it’s a new model that has a tip device as well built in and don't plug it into any extension cords.”
