Family Forced Out Of Tysons Home After Fire

TYSONS, VA—A family of five has been displaced after a fire started at their Tysons townhouse on Tuesday.

Firefighters responded to the 8500 block of Jeffersonian Court around 3:12 p.m. and quickly extinguished a fire in a second-floor bedroom. An adult and child were home at the time and escaped when smoke alarms went off. No one was injured.

Fire investigators say the blaze started sue to cigarettes thrown away improperly in the bedroom. Damages are estimated at $93,750.

The family has accepted Red Cross assistance. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

The fire department residents to properly discard smoking materials following these safety tips:

• Do not throw away cigarette butts in potted planting soil. The soil becomes highly flammable when it gets too dry.
• Completely douse butts and ashes with water before throwing them away, as they can smolder and cause a fire.
• Use large, deep ashtrays.
• Check furniture for any dropped ashes before going to bed. Empty ashes into a fireproof container with water and sand.
• Keep smoking materials away from anything that can burn, such as mattresses, bedding, upholstered furniture and draperies.
• Never smoke in a home where oxygen is being used.
• Use fire-safe cigarettes, which are less likely to cause fires.
• Keep matches and lighters up high, out of children's sight and reach.
• Stay alert and avoid drinking and drugs to prevent a deadly fire.
• Do not smoke in bed.

Images via Fairfax County Fire and Rescue