Date: Friday, March 9, 2024
Time: 7:55 p.m.
Location/Address: 436 Central Ave Davidsonville, MD 21035
Type of Incident: Commercial Building Fire
Description of Structure/Property: 1 story, Multi-Tenant Commercial Building - 22,400 Square Feet.
Alarms: 2-Alarm Fire
Injuries or Deaths: Minor Injury to a business owner. The patient was treated on scene and released.
Firefighter Injury: N/A
Estimated Dollar Loss: Unknown
Fire Alarm Status: N/A
Assisting Fire Departments: Annapolis Fire Department, Naval Support Activity (NSA) Annapolis Fire Department, and Prince George's County Fire/EMS Department
Other Agencies: Anne Arundel County Police Department, Baltimore Gas and Electric.
Number of Responding Firefighters: 98
Time to Control: Approximately 3 hours
Discovered By: Passerby
Area of Origin: Undetermined
Preliminary Cause: Under Investigation by Anne Arundel County Fire Investigation Unit.
Summary
The Anne Arundel County Fire Department received a 911 call at 7:55 p.m. from a passerby who reported seeing flames coming from the commercial structure roof. An additional 911 call came in from a neighbor behind the building a couple of minutes later, advising the "whole building" was on fire and that loud "booms" were being heard in the area of the building.
Upon arrival, AACo Fire Crews reported the 22,500-square-foot structure to be 75% involved with fire and explosions could be heard from inside. Additionally, a building occupant on the scene advised crews that the building was a storage facility, and no one was inside, but there was a substantial fuel load, including hydraulic fluid containment inside. A second alarm was activated due to the size of the building and the amount of fire upon arrival.
Crews worked collectively, using the water brought to the scene on the fire apparatus to protect the attached business and several exposed vehicles while simultaneously setting up a sustainable water supply to obtain the amount of water required to control the main portion of the fire, as this was an area without hydrants. It took just under 100 firefighters approximately three hours to get the fire under control.
One minor injury was reported and the patient was treated and released on the scene.
The Anne Arundel County Fire/Arson and Explosives Unit is working to identify the cause of the fire. The cause is undetermined at this time.
