Firefighters Called to Council Office Building (VIDEOS & PHOTOS)

A slipped belt on a rooftop air conditioning unit prompted a call for fire trucks at the Council Office Building in Rockville on Thursday.

David Dise, director of the Montgomery County Department of General Services, said the belt caused smoke, which got into the building’s ventilation system. The unit was replaced, Dise said. By about 4 p.m., he said, the building was back in service.

The building had been evacuated about 2 p.m., and an employee there said the stairwells had a smell like burning rubber.

“It wasn’t intense but you could definitely smell something,” he said.

Speaking about 10 minutes after the alarm sounded, he called it a “robust response.”

The building had been undergoing renovation, and the fourth-floor work was done or nearly so.

ICYMI – COB on Maryland Av, Rockville, temporarily evacuated due to haze/smoke in bldg, malfunctioning HVAC, bldg reoccupied ~3p pic.twitter.com/qwlshsDj6D

— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) August 3, 2017

Update – County Office Bldg (COB) 100 Maryland Av, FFs investigating slight haze on fourth floor, bldg evacuated

— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) August 3, 2017

100 Maryland Ave. county office building, Rockville, FFs investigating smoke in the building

— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) August 3, 2017

Update – COB, haze/odor isolated to HVAC & related ductwork on 4th floor, utilities controlled, bldg reoccupied, some roads remained closed pic.twitter.com/f9VKbMQBGl

— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) August 3, 2017

Here’s video from the scene:

About Douglas Tallman

Reporter with 35 years experience throughout Maryland. Reach me at dtallman@mymcmedia.org or via Twitter at @MCM-Doug

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