Good Thursday morning, Alexandria! Today is Thursday, July 3, the 184th day of 2025. There are 181 days left in the year. On this day in 1775, Gen. George Washington took command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts.
☀️ Today’s weather: Sunny, with a high near 91 degrees. Calm wind becoming northwest around 6 mph in the afternoon. Mostly clear tonight, with a low around 69 degrees. Light and variable wind.
Alexandria Fire Chief Felipe Hernandez Jr. delivered an upbeat assessment of the department’s transformation during his first year in office, reporting significant improvements in employee morale and retention that have addressed longstanding staffing challenges.
Speaking to City Council Tuesday night (July 1), Hernandez said the department’s monthly attrition rate has dropped from 3.3 employees to 1.1 over the past year, with four former employees returning to work. The 10-year average attrition rate stands at 2.1 employees per month.
No injuries were reported after a townhouse fire in Old Town North Monday morning (June 16).
The Alexandria Fire Department was called at around 3:30 a.m. by neighbors of the two-level home in the 1000 block of Vernon Street. AFD saw white smoke billowing from the rear of the home, and found difficulty gaining entry due to “hoarding conditions,” according to AFD dispatches.
A balcony fire at an apartment building in the West End was quickly extinguished Monday morning (May 26), and no injuries were reported.
The Alexandria Fire Department responded to 203 Yoakum Parkway at around 7:45 a.m. to find a fire showing from a fourth-floor apartment balcony. The two occupants inside the apartment were unharmed, and the fire was contained to the balcony, according to AFD dispatches.
No serious injuries were reported after the management office for the Fairlington Villages condo association caught fire Wednesday afternoon.
Alexandria Fire Department and Arlington firefighters responded around 2 p.m. to a report of a building on fire at 3001 S. Abingdon Street, near Abingdon Elementary School in the Fairlington neighborhood, according to ARLnow. Fairlington Village manages dozens of buildings and about 1,700 townhome and apartments on nearly 100 acres in Alexandria and Arlington. Two firefighters were treated for non-life threatening injuries at the scene.
After a data breach last year, Alexandria has switched ambulance transportation billing vendors.
It can cost upward of $750 for a ride to the hospital in an ambulance, and the city changed billing providers after “an issue” with the previous vendor, Change Healthcare/Optum/Per Your Health (CHC).
Alexandria City Council honored its emergency medical services (EMS) providers at its Legislative Meeting on Tuesday (May 13) with a special proclamation for Emergency Medical Services Week, which runs from May 18 to 24, 2025.
During the meeting, Mayor Alyia Gaskins and the Alexandria City Council declared the week “Emergency Medical Services Week.”
A fire erupted in a top-floor apartment in Alexandria on Friday night (April 25), triggering a two-alarm response from emergency services.
Alexandria Fire Department’s Engine and Truck 208 were first on the scene at the 5400 block of Sheffield Court. Firefighters encountered flames coming from a top-floor apartment and quickly worked to put out the fire, which had spread to the attic.
The Alexandria Fire Department has earned accreditation from the Commission on Fire Accreditation International, a part of the Center for Public Safety Excellence.
James Parajon, the City Manager, says this shows Alexandria’s dedication to top-notch public safety and always improving fire and emergency services.
Welcome to Friday in Alexandria. What a week we’ve been having.
To start things off, ALXnow broke the story of an Alexandria Police Department’s arson and burglary investigation after Sunday morning’s (March 30) shopping center fire that shuttered multiple businesses in the 5200 block of Duke Street.
The Alexandria Police Department is investigating last Sunday morning’s fire, which affected multiple businesses in the 5200 block of Duke Street, as a commercial robbery and arson.
As previously reported, multiple businesses were affected when the fire started at Diko Bar & Hookah Lounge (5243 Duke Street).
