Firefighter, resident injured in Baltimore County house fire sparked by lighter

The improper use of a lighter led to a fire that injured two people in Halethorpe Monday night, according to Baltimore County Fire officials. 

Crews were called to a home in the 1200 block of Vogt Avenue around 9:30 p.m., where they found heavy fire conditions on the second floor. 

Firefighters searched the home and found a man unconscious inside. He was removed from the home and taken to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center, officials said. 

A woman escaped from the home through a window with help from neighbors, according to fire officials. 

A firefighter was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, officials said. 

Investigators determined that the accidental fire was caused by the improper use of a lighter. 

Baltimore County fires 

Baltimore County has seen several devastating fires in the first few months of 2026. 

The county recorded its first fire-related death of the year on Jan. 4, after a house fire in Parkville left a 76-year-old woman dead. 

Days later, neighbors helped rescue a family from a fire in Middle River.

In mid-January, a 6-month-old died in a house fire in Essex. That same night, another fire broke out at a high-rise apartment in Dundalk, leaving more than a dozen people displaced.