Improperly discarded smoking materials listed as cause of duplex fire in Albemarle County

A Saturday-morning fire in a duplex on Browns Gap Turnpike in Albemarle County has been traced back to improperly discarded smoking materials.

This is the word from Albemarle County Fire Rescue, which responded to the 6:39 a.m. fire.

The first arriving fire suppression units arrived 22 minutes after dispatch to find an individual using a fire extinguisher and garden hose to douse a fire that had started in a living area of an apartment.

Responding fire units extinguished the fire, which was contained in one room. There was no damage to the adjacent apartment unit.

There are no injuries reported at this time. One resident has been displaced and is being assisted by their family and the American Red Cross.