DC firefighters battle blaze in historic firehouse near US Capitol

WASHINGTON — Firefighters in Washington, D.C., on Friday battled a three-alarm fire that started in a three-story former firehouse under renovation near the U.S. Capitol.

DC Fire and EMS said one firefighter declared mayday and was rescued. No injuries were reported.

The fire began Friday evening in Old Engine Company No. 12, now a landmark historic site along North Capitol Street in the Bloomingdale neighborhood of Washington. Vito Maggiolo, a spokesman for the fire department, told The Washington Post that the fire may have been fueled by a gas line and it was well along by the time firefighters arrived.

DC Fire posted on social media that an adjacent four-story building that is part of new complex attached to the firehouse was also “well involved.” The department said several adjacent homes were evacuated as a precaution, but the fire appeared to be contained as of 9 p.m. EST.

About 25 fire trucks and 125 firefighters, including some from nearby Montgomery County in Maryland, responded to the blaze.

According to the nonprofit DC Preservation League, Old Engine Company No. 12 was built in 1896. It was vacated by the fire department in 1987.