Guardsmen Stop Apartment Fire in District

As the D.C. Safe and Beautiful, Joint Task Force District of Columbia mission enters its fifth month, service members assigned to the task force continue to make tangible differences in the lives of residents and visitors alike. Since the mission’s launch in August 2025, National Guardsmen from units across the country have provided critical support …
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As the D.C. Safe and Beautiful, Joint Task Force District of Columbia mission enters its fifth month, service members assigned to the task force continue to make tangible differences in the lives of residents and visitors alike.

Since the mission’s launch in August 2025, National Guardsmen from units across the country have provided critical support alongside local law enforcement and federal partners.

These soldiers and airmen hail from diverse backgrounds across the United States, many balancing part-time military service with full-time civilian careers, education or community contributions. Their unique skills and vigilance have a real-world impact on the district.

One recent event underscores their commitment to the mission. Three West Virginia National Guard members on a routine presence patrol along Massachusetts Avenue Northwest detected the faint smell of smoke drifting from a nearby apartment building. Air Force Senior Airman Brett Fries, Army Sgt. Devin Cantwell and Army Pfc. Tyler E. Farley quickly sprang into action.

“We were on patrol and thought we saw smoke, and I asked them if they smelled anything,” Fries said. “We stood there for a minute just to see if it happened again, and you could see it start rolling more and more out the window. So, Farley and I ran into the building while Sgt. Cantwell went to the fire station.”

With the help of a resident, Fries and Farley entered the apartment complex and discovered a dryer on fire in the second-floor laundry room. The blaze had already spread to the back wall.

“The smoke was coming out [of] the second story of an apartment building,” Farley said. “We went upstairs and saw that it was coming out of the laundry room, so we got one of the residents to open the door for us.”

The team located a fire extinguisher in the building, extinguished the flames, escorted residents to safety and had the fire under control by the time D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services arrived.

“The building probably would have gone up [in flames],” Cantwell said.

Their sharp awareness and rapid response likely prevented a minor incident from escalating into a catastrophic fire in a densely populated area.

As the mission continues into 2026, the National Guard remains committed to supporting the district.

“There’s a lot of people that I’ve spoken to on the streets, and they feel safer in the area,” Cantwell said. “We’re definitely doing good up here.”

D.C. Safe and Beautiful, Joint Task Force District of Columbia statistics:

Rendering medical assistance to approximately 170 people.

Reuniting 12 lost minors with their families or authorities.

Intervening in or de-escalating 99 potential fights.

Assisting the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department with roughly 130 apprehensions.

Administering naloxone to reverse opioid overdoses in 50 critical cases.

Source: U.S. Department of War, December 2025