Two sent to burn center, five displaced in downtown Silver Spring apartment fire 

Blaze was contained quickly by residential sprinklers, MCFRS said

August 11, 2023 2:42 p.m.

A kitchen fire Thursday night in a downtown Silver Spring apartment tower sent two people to a burn center for their injuries and displaced five occupants, according to a spokesperson for Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS).  

Sprinklers contained the fire to the unit, according to MCFRS radio dispatch 

Around 8:45 p.m., fire personnel responded to a fire on the 11th floor of Lenox Park Apartments at 1400 East West Highway, near Colesville Road, spokesperson Pete Piringer announced on X, formerly known as Twitter. It was a cooking fire in the kitchen. 

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At 8:51 p.m., MCFRS confirmed that the fire was extinguished over their radio channels. 

Three patients were evaluated, and two were transported to the Burn Center at MedStar Washington Hospital Center for their burn injuries, according to MCFRS radio communications. 

Five occupants were displaced after the blaze, Piringer said. 

The lack of sprinklers was cited as a factor that contributed to a fatal fire on Feb. 18 at the Arrive Silver Spring Apartments on Georgia Avenue.  Melanie Diaz, 25, died in the blaze. State law requires apartment towers to have sprinklers but has issued a deadline of 2033 to retrofit existing buildings. 

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