UPDATE 4/10/2023: On Thursday, April 6, 2023, at 9:48 p.m., firefighters responded to 4860 Smallwood Church Road in Indian Head, for the reported house on fire.
The owner/occupant was identified as Scott Hoppe with the estimated lost of structure and contents valued at $750,000.00
Smoke alarms were present, activated and alerted the occupants.
The fire reached 2 alarms and brought over 100 firefighters to the scene with the fire being deemed under control in 14 hours.
Investigation is ongoing, the area of origin is undetermined with the cause remaining under investigation.
Firefighters arrived and found a large volume of fire in the roof area. A structural collapse of the roof structure occurred shortly after arrival, necessitating a defensive attack. Firefighters were unable to extinguish areas of hidden fire and made the determination to allow the fire to burn until it was accessible by master streams the following morning.
No injuries were reported and the family denied needing assistance from the American Red Cross.
Photos courtesy of the Waldorf, Bryans Road, and Mechanicsville Volunteer Fire Departments, and J. Newcomb.
Crews from Fairfax County, VA, Prince George’s County, Anne Arundel, St. Mary’s County, and Washington D.C., provided fill ins to companies across Charles County.
On Thursday, April 6, 2023, at 9:48 p.m., firefighters responded to 4860 Smallwood Church Road in Indian Head, for the reported house on fire.
The 911 caller reported they woke up and found the house on fire and advised the balcony and second floor had fire showing. All occupants were reportedly out of the structure and accounted for.
Due to the area being a non-hydrant area, a tanker task force assignment was dispatched which alerted additional tankers to the call.
Firefighters arrived on the scene to find a two-story residence with fire showing through the roof.
Within six minutes of crews arrival, evacuation tones were sounded after the roof collapsed into the second floor.
First arriving crews ran out of water in under 5 minutes and utilized a pool in the backyard of the residence until tankers could arrive on scene. A second alarm was quickly sounded and brought additional firefighters to the scene.
Incident command reported the fire was controlled in approximately 50 minutes. Crews operated as exterior and defensive only with multiple handlines and a ladder pipe.
Firefighters operated on the scene for over 3 hours. Crews from Charles, Prince George’s County and St. Mary’s County responded to assist or to provide fill ins.
The occupants of the home denied needing assistance from the American Red Cross.
No known injuries were reported.
SMECO and the Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshal responded to the scene to assist firefighters.
Updates will be provided when they become available.
