Fire at home near GW Parkway started by electrical failure in wiring

A two-alarm fire Sunday morning in a large home overlooking the George Washington Parkway was caused by “an electrical failure within the wiring” of the home’s whole house humidifier, according to Fairfax Fire and Rescue investigators.

The fire, which was called in around 7:45 a.m., damaged the basement and all four floors of the 83-year-old home at 1901 Mallnison Way. Two people were in the house at the time of the fire but escaped without injury.

Although the fire started in the basement, it spread to the second floor and attic of the house via pipe chases and other spaces in the home, according to a Fairfax Fire and Rescue press release. The complexity of the fire, coupled with the large size of the five-bedroom home, caused the second alarm to be called in, according to the fire department.

Smoke was still visible in front of the house on Mallinson Way hours after the fire Sunday.

Damage to the home was around $280,000, according to fire investigators. The home did have functioning smoke alarms, but the residents smelled smoke and escaped before they sounded, according to the fire department. 

Units from Fairfax County, Fort Belvoir Fire and Emergency Services, and the City of Alexandria Fire Department all responded to the blaze.