WASHINGTON — Authorities say more than a dozen people who gathered for a wedding escaped from a fire that destroyed part of a Montgomery County home.
It happened on Keeneland Circle in North Potomac, Maryland.
Pete Piringer with Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service said the fire started around 2:30 a.m. Sunday and was centered around a recycling bin near the garage. The cause of the fire is not yet known but authorities believe it is likely discarded smoking materials.
Damage is estimated at $450,000.
Aftermath Keeneland Cir & Triple Crown Rd, N Potomac, late nite/early morning (~230a) house fire, all occupants got out, incl many house guests, no injuries, 1 family displaced pic.twitter.com/lO2C3PPwos
— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) June 24, 2018
Piringer said 15 people who were together in the house for the wedding got out safely and went to another family home.
Piringer says the wedding was scheduled for later that day and many items for it were inside the home.
Bride Coral Ben-Atar told NBC Washington that she and her parents, who own the home, decided to go ahead with the wedding. The bride’s dress was not in the house but in a truck outside the home, and firefighters saved the groom’s suit.
The owners of the house will likely have to stay at a hotel for months, while the house is repaired, NBC Washington reported.
Below is the area where it happened.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
