Blaze Shuts Down Much of Adams Morgan

TRAFFIC IN ADAMS MORGAN and Woodley Park is snarled this morning after a a big four-alarm condominium blaze on Adams Mill Road brought a huge response from D.C. firefighters overnight. The fire teams are drawing water from hydrants in Woodley Park, about a half-mile away.

According to The Post's Debbi Wilgoren, water pressure in Adams Morgan is considerably lower than in other parts of the city, and D.C. fire officials said they lost "crucial minutes," as The Post described it, by having to get their water from a higher pressure line across Rock Creek Park.

Ward 1 D.C. Council member Jim Graham, according to broadcast reports, was shocked to learn that the area, which he represents, is a "historic low-pressure area."

Two firefighters were injured by falling debris while fighting the blaze.

When we walked to check out the scene this morning, smoke was still billowing from the building in the 2600 block of Adams Mill Road, opposite Walter Pierce Park. Residents wrapped in blankets on the Calvert Street sidewalk stared at the burning building. Fire hoses stretched the length of the Duke Ellington Bridge to hydrants west of Connecticut Avenue, closing the busy commuter corridor to traffic. Columbia Road at 18th Street NW is also closed.

» "District Firefighters Battle Building Fire in N.W." [WaPo]