Investigators blame smoking in bed for the fire that killed a man early Monday morning in Silver Spring.

Firefighters were called to the report of a fire in the 8000 block of Georgia Avenue just before 2 a.m. after neighbors called 911. The neighbors also tried to rescue the man, but were unable to get in the door. They also tried a rescue with a ladder, but to no effect.

When fire crews arrived, they forced open the door to the apartment and found a small fire in the bedroom, around the bed. The home's resident was in the bed; he was transported to MedStar, where he later died of smoke inhalation.

Police believe the cause of the fire may have been the man smoking in bed and failing to properly extinguish a cigarette or other smoking material. Smoke alarms in the residence failed because they had no batteries.

The victim, a 31-year-old man, has not been identified by police pending the notification of his family. He was involved in the opening of a Vietnamese restaurant on the building's main floor less than two months ago.

Davis Avalos, who works at the auto body shop next door and knew the victim, said, "He was a nice guy -- very hard worker. He was just the guy in the middle of everything. Very sad."

The fire marshal has closed the building, deeming it unsafe.

Email To A Friend