Four displaced by Rose Hill area house fire

A large fire badly damaged a home in the Rose Hill area on Sunday afternoon, killing one dog and displacing four residents.

A neighbor saw smoke and then spotted the fire in the 5900 block of Montell Drive (see map) shortly before 2 p.m., according to the Fairfax Fire and Rescue Department. When firefighters arrived on the scene, the rear of the house was engulfed in flames and the fire had spread to the second floor, attic and garage.

Units from Fairfax County and the city of Alexandria responded to the fire, with traffic on Franconia Road shut down in both directions as firefighters battled the blaze. Once the fire was out, a search located the dog inside the house.

Nobody was home at the time of the fire. One civilian and one firefighter were taken to the hospital for check-ups, according to the fire department.

The blaze started in a screened-in porch area, and the fire department blamed improperly disposed smoking materials for starting the fire. The total damage was estimated to be $663,538.