Early Morning Fire Displaces One Columbia Resident

An early morning apartment building fire today in the 10500 block of Cross Fox Lane displaced one resident of the unit involved in the blaze, according to a press release from the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services.

The resident is being treated for injuries that are not life threatening. The injuries are not a result of the fire, according to the statement.

Just before 1:30 a.m., HCDFRS crews responded to the call of a fire in a three-story apartment building to find flames coming from a second-floor apartment.

The fire was quickly extinguished and was contained to the apartment where it started, according to the statement.

The injured person, the sole occupant of the apartment, was transported to a local hospital by Howard County police for evaluation before firefighters arrived.

No other injuries were reported.

Building occupants were able to manually activate the fire alarm system to let other building occupants know to evacuate.

The building does not have a built-in fire sprinkler system, according to the statement.

Damage was estimated at about $40,000, according to fire department spokeswoman Jackie Cutler.

The cause of the fire is being investigated by the HCDFRS Fire Investigation Division.

This story was updated to include an estimate of damages and a photograph.