Eight Firefighters Injured as Wall Collapses in Germantown: Update

Updated at 4:25 p.m.

GERMANTOWN, MD — Federal investigators have joined local investigators at the scene of a Germantown townhome fire and collapse that injured eight Montgomery County firefighters Monday morning.

The three-alarm fire happened at 19350 Churubusco Lane in Germantown shortly after 1 a.m.

A fire department official said agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms are at the scene, along with a trained ATF dog.

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services spokesman Pete Piringer said 120 firefighters responded to the fire, which began in the middle townhouse.

The front wall of the second floor collapsed during the fire, injuring eight firefighters, Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said.

All of the other firefighters have been treated and released from a local hospital.

Battalion Chief Kelvin Thomas said firefighters went into the house to search for a resident who was unaccounted for, and the wall collapsed at that time. The firefighters were freed quickly, the occupant was found, and is OK.

None of the residents of the townhome were injured, Thomas said.

A cause of the fire has not been determined.

Damage totals were not available Monday afternoon, but the townhouse will be a total loss. There was also damage to adjoining homes which has displaced a total of 20 people. Red Cross is assisting those displaced.

»Germantown fire photos courtesy of Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services