Firefighters rescue 1 man, 24 small dogs from Manassas townhome fire

Multiple City of Manassas and Prince William County fire and rescue units responded to the fire, which was located in the 9200 block of Byrd Drive, at about 7:46 p.m. on Thursday, March 11, according to Patty Prince, City of Manassas spokeswoman.

Units arrived to find smoke coming from the second floor on the back side of the townhouse. A resident had escaped from the second floor and was found standing on an overhang roof, according to Manassas Fire and Rescue officials.

A crew from the department’s Tower 501 helped the resident down and rescued the 24 dogs. The fire was contained to one room, according to a Manassas Fire and Rescue Facebook post.

One female resident was transported to Novant Health UVA Health System’s Prince William Medical Center for treatment of “minor burn injuries” she suffered while trying to extinguish the fire with buckets of water, Prince said in a news release.

The dogs have been transported to the City of Manassas animal shelter pending an investigation. Their condition was not immediately known on Friday morning, Prince said.

The fire is believed to have been caused by an exposed or damaged plug from a window air-conditioning unit, which had bedding materials placed up against it. Damage to the townhouse is estimated at $2,000, Prince said.