Rash Of Fires Sparked By Improperly Discarded Smoking Materials

The fire that tore through a Centreville, Virginia, town house community earlier this month was sparked by smoking materials that had been improperly discarded, fire officials said Monday. Several of the houses were engulfed in flames, a total of 13 were damaged and three dozen people were displaced. The losses from the May 2 blaze are estimated at $2.2 million, the Fairfax County County Fire and Rescue Department said in a news release. The town house blaze was one of three major fires that broke out in Fairfax County on the same day earlier this month, said Ashley Hildebrandt, a public information officer with Fairfax County Fire and Rescue.