WASHINGTON — A woman is now in stable condition after she was critically injured in a house fire in Riverdale Heights, Maryland, early Wednesday morning.
The woman and her daughter were awakened by a smoke alarm, but the mother, who uses a wheelchair, was unable to make it out of the house even with her daughter’s help, fire officials say.
Chief Marc Bashoor, of the Prince George’s County Fire and EMS, said that the fire department received several 911 calls at about 4:30 a.m. about a fire in a 1 ½-story house at 6301 Sheridan St. When firefighters arrived, they saw fire coming out of the right and the rear.
One woman escaped the house, Bashoor said, dropping her phone on the way out. She told neighbors that her handicapped mother was trapped inside.
The firefighters found the mother in a hospital bed inside the house and carried her out. She was in a hospital in critical condition with burns and smoke inhalation, Bashoor said. Her condition has been updated to stable as of Wednesday afternoon, and she is expected to survive her injuries, according to a released statement from fire official Mark Brady.
Bashoor added that the daughter was taken to a hospital with minor burns and a dog was found safe.
Firefighters also went through the neighborhood to check smoke detectors later that day.
Officials said the damage is estimated at $50,000 and that the fire started on the first floor in the kitchen, although the cause is still under investigation.
WTOP’s Neal Augenstein and Teta Alim contributed to this report.
