Electrical problem caused Fairfax Co. firetruck blaze

The two-alarm blaze destroyed the backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed the backup firetruck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
Fairfax County firefighters battle the blaze at the Springfield, Virginia, fire station early Sunday morning. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
Fairfax County firefighters battled the blaze at the Springfield, Virginia, fire station early Sunday morning. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The fire station bay where the fire broke out is shown boarded up after the two-alarm fire. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed the backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax Co. Professional FF/Paramedics)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed the backup firetruck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax Co. Professional FF/Paramedics)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
(Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
(Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
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The two-alarm blaze destroyed the backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
Fairfax County firefighters battle the blaze at the Springfield, Virginia, fire station early Sunday morning. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed the backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax Co. Professional FF/Paramedics)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)
The two-alarm blaze destroyed a backup fire truck and caused a total of $200,000 in damage. (Courtesy Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department)

WASHINGTON — Fire investigators say an electrical issue in a backup firetruck is responsible for sparking a two-alarm blaze early Sunday that destroyed the truck, caused $200,000 in damages and rendered the Fairfax County, Virginia, station uninhabitable for at least the next week.

The fire began about 12:45 a.m. Sunday in the cab of the reserve truck parked in one of the bays of Edsall Road Station 26 on Carolina Place in Springfield, Virginia.

The 12 firefighters on duty were awakened and alerted by the station’s fire alarm.

“Luckily, no one was hurt and the firefighters did exactly what we preach to the citizens: Make sure everybody was accounted for before they went in to extinguish the fire,” Batallion Chief Willie Bailey with Fairfax County Fire Department told WTOP.

About 60 firefighters worked for about 25 minutes to extinguish the blaze. The truck, which Bailey referred to as a rescue squad, was declared a total loss. The fire also damaged the roof of the station, he said. All told, the fire caused about $200,000 in damage.

The station is currently not livable, Bailey said, although it’s expected that firefighters will be able to return to work 24-hour shifts at the station within the next week.

Bailey said the station has created an action plan to ensure there are no interruptions or delays in responding to emergency calls in the county.

WTOP’s Kathy Stewart contributed to this report. 

Jack Moore

Jack Moore joined WTOP.com as a digital writer/editor in July 2016. Previous to his current role, he covered federal government management and technology as the news editor at Nextgov.com, part of Government Executive Media Group.

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