Kitchen Fire On Briarstone Lane Displaces Family of 6

A family of six—two adults and four children—were displaced from their Gaithersburg townhome Monday afternoon following a fire in the kitchen, a Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services spokesperson told Patch.

Firefighters were called to the home on Briarstone Lane at 5 p.m. for the report of a fire in the townhome, MCFRS Battalion Chief Jim Resnick said. The fire started on the stovetop and extended into kitchen cabinets.

The fire was extinguished quickly and was ruled accidental, Resnick said. The homeowner told firefighters she had put something on the stove and had become distracted by a small child, Resnick said. When she returned, she found the fire.

"Unfortunately that's one of the most common causes of fire in Montgomery County and the nation," Resnick said.

Upon finding the fire, the homeowners took their four children across the street to the home of neighbor Richard Ryberg, Ryberg said while accompanying the children outside the home.

From Ryberg's house, they called the fire department, he said. Ryberg then went across the street with his fire extinguisher to help put out the flames, he said.

"It was very courageous of him to do that," Resnick said. "From our perspective, he was smart about the way he did it. He made an assessment about if he could reach the fire, used his extinguisher and got out of the house."

Ryberg said when he entered through the home's front door, smoke prevented him from seeing the stairwell, which was less than 10 feet away.

"If they hadn't gotten out of there immediately, I can see how this could've been a very serious situation," Ryberg said.

The homeowner declined to comment on the fire. Resnick said the family is working with their insurance company and the Red Cross for assistance.