WASHINGTON — A Washington Redskins Marching Band leader was displaced from his home after a fire broke out in his apartment complex in Manassas, Virginia.
Tony Cardenas, his wife and son woke to smoke alarms the night of Saturday, June 11, NBC Washington reported. The fire had begun in a neighboring apartment.
After quickly getting dressed and grabbing a few belongings, Cardenas said they made it out of the apartment safely.
Eighteen units in the apartment building were destroyed, NBC Washington reported. Cardenas and his family are living in a hotel, having lost nearly everything.
A cigarette that a tenant had put out in a potted plant was the cause of the fire, investigators said.
Washington Redskins band members set up a GoFundMe page for Cardenas, who has been volunteering with the band for more than 35 years. They had raised more than $4,000 Saturday.
“I’m very humbled and overwhelmed by the generosity, the love, the care that they’re giving me,” Cardenas told NBC Washington.
