* Fire destroys Frederick County home

By J.R. Williams -- jrwilliams@nvdaily.com

(4:20 p.m.) WINCHESTER -- Fire officials are investigating a blaze that destroyed a Frederick County home early Wednesday.

Fire and rescue crews were called to 260 Sawyer Lane at 3:41 a.m. and arrived to find the home fully engulfed in flames, said Jeff Neal, assistant fire marshal for the county.

The home was unoccupied at the time of the fire. There were no injuries, he said.
The homeowners, Doug and Suzanne Brackett, were on vacation at the time of the fire, but are now returning, he said.

The three-story home, built in 2007, is buried in the Layside Estates neighborhood west of Winchester. Traffic was still heavy with firetrucks on the gravel roads leading to the property Wednesday afternoon.

Firefighters were spraying the home, which was still smoldering. The entire house was leveled save for its front facade. A nearby detached garage was left standing.

A white Ford Explorer in the driveway, which Neal said belonged to the homeowners, appeared to have minimal damage.

Neal declined to comment on a suspected cause of the fire, saying an investigation was still ongoing.

"We can't make entry into the house right now because it's still hot," he said. "It will be a day or two before we can make a determination on a cause."

Frederick County fire companies from Clear Brook, Gore, Round Hill, Gainesboro and North Mountain responded to the fire.

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