Flaming Clothes Dryer Doused by Firefighters

The Mount Tabor Fire Department was called to a Parsippany home early Tuesday morning after a dryer burst into flames in the basement of a townhouse.

Two fire engines, two Fire Chiefs, a Morris Plains engine and Par-Troy EMS were called to 97 Edgefield Drive on a report of heavy smoke billowing from the townhouse, said Mount Tabor Fire Department Capt. Bryan Crawford.

At the time of the call there was one woman in the house with three small dogs, who had all safely evacuated by the time firefighters arrived. No one was injured.

Firefighters located the fire within seconds inside the basement dryer, said Crawford.

“It was physically inside the dryer and all the clothes were on fire,” he said. “We filled it up with water and made it into a bathtub. The fire was knocked down in seconds.”

However, it took a long time to vent the house and clear it of all the smoke, he said.

The initial investigation showed that the dryer vent was filled with lint which was ignited by the heat of the dryer.

“It was just a matter of time,” said Crawford. “You should clean out the lint every time you run the dryer and at minimum once a month. It takes about 30 seconds.”