In a joint press release, the Lexington and Rockbridge County fire departments announced Tuesday they have determined the cause of an early morning fire at an off-campus Washington and Lee student house.
Fire chiefs Ty Dickerson of Lexington and Nathan Ramsey, Rockbridge County, said that the fire early Thursday morning at 125 Winding Way was started by a dropped cigarette on a couch. They said that residents of the house noticed the fire earlier in the night and doused the couch in water before heading to bed. The fire rekindled later in the night and spread to the rest of the house as occupants slept.
According to the release, the house is a total loss. In an interview last week, Dickerson said that the residents were “lucky to be alive.”