A small fire inside a Bethesda office building was accidentally sparked by magnified sunlight reflecting through a snow globe, according to fire officials.
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS) crews responded to a commercial high-rise office building in the 7550 block of Wisconsin Avenue near East West Highway after smoke was reported in a fourth-floor hallway. Firefighters located and extinguished a small fire inside a fourth-floor office suite.
The building was mostly unoccupied at the time of the incident. Some smoke spread into the hallway, and crews worked to ventilate and remove smoke from the building. No injuries were reported.
MCFRS chief spokesperson Pete Piringer later shared that it was determined the fire was accidental. Investigators say radiant heat from sunlight reflected and magnified through a snow globe appears to have ignited nearby combustible materials. Damage is estimated at several thousand dollars.
