Lint buildup leads to clothes dryer fire in Mountain View apartment building

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A fire broke out in an apartment complex in Mountain View on Wednesday afternoon after a clothes dryer overheated from lint buildup, according to the Mountain View Fire Department.

Dispatchers received a 911 call around 3:51 p.m. on Oct. 23, reporting a fire in the laundry room of an apartment building located on the 800 block of N. Rengstorff Ave. All of the tenants had evacuated the building before fire crews arrived, and there were no reported injuries, according to the statement.

When firefighters entered the building, they discovered heavy smoke coming from the third-floor laundry room and that the water sprinklers had been activated. After the blaze was put out, firefighters went through the building to make sure the fire was fully extinguished. They also removed water from the third floor and from two apartments directly below the laundry room that had some water damage from the sprinklers, the fire department said.

Fire officials determined that a clothes dryer in the laundry room had overheated from lint buildup, which led to the blaze. The estimated damage to the building and its contents is about $40,000, the fire department said.

Before leaving the building, firefighters replaced the sprinkler heads and reactivated the water supply. They then turned the building over to the facilities’ maintenance for further repairs, the fire department said.

The fire department also has highlighted best practices from the National Fire Protection Association. The leading cause of fires in clothes dryers is from dust, fiber and lint, according to the association. It recommends that dryers be installed by professionals and to always use a lint filter. Filters should be cleaned after every laundry load and the air exhaust vent pipe should not be restricted when the dryer is in use, it said.