A fire at a Montgomery County car dealership Tuesday night caused an estimated $1.5 million in damages to a service and parts area, according to fire officials.
One firefighter was injured battling the fire at Sport Honda in the Briggs Chaney automotive park that was reported about 10 p.m. About 100 firefighters had the fire under control in about 30 minutes.
Fire and rescue spokesman Pete Piringer said the firefighter was treated for minor injuries and released from a hospital.
Piringer said that although the exact cause has not been determined, the fire was likely the result of an electrical failure in the auto parts area, toward the back of the building at 3201 Automobile Blvd.
The dealer’s staff had been closing up the showroom in the front of the building when the fire started, triggering the automatic fire alarm, Piringer said.
Crews “arrived to find heavy smoke coming from the building,” Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said during an online video briefing from the scene.
The dealer was closed Wednesday, according to its website.
About an hour later, a fire heavily damaged a townhouse in Germantown, displacing a family of four.
The fire at the three-story townhouse on Appledowre Circle apparently started in an outside heat-pump and was reported by a neighbor. One firefighter sustained minor injuries.
“The fire was quickly knocked down,” Piringer said.
Damage was estimated at $200,000. About 75 firefighters were sent to the scene.
Piringer noted that about 75 percent of the county’s fire and rescue workers were on the two calls another other emergencies between 10 p.m. and midnight.
