Wingos, English Rose Garden damaged in Georgetown fire

Two Georgetown storefronts were badly burned in a two-alarm fire Tuesday that took 80 firefighters to get under control.

The English Rose Garden and popular Georgetown eatery Wingos, which share the same building, were both damaged in the blaze at the intersection of O Street and Wisconsin Avenue,​ NW.​

“The fire was determined to be accidental and it started in the kitchen of Wingos,” D.C. Fire and EMS chief spokesperson Vito Maggiolo told The Washington Times Tuesday evening.

Fire rescue services were dispatched shortly before 11 a.m., Mr. Maggiolo said, and deployed 80 firefighters using 20 pieces of equipment to battle the flames for more than hour to get it under the control.

Three firefighters were hospitalized with minor injuries before the flame was contained later that afternoon.

“The building had undergone extensive renovation over the years, typical of many aging commercial structures in this neighborhood. As a result, the flames spread through concealed spaces and voids, and into three false ceilings, making the fire difficult to reach,” wrote DC Fire and EMS in a statement on social media.

As firefighters opened up the the interior of the building, more flames spread to the store next door, The English Rose Garden.

By Tuesday evening, Mr. Maggiolo said, the damage to the two storefronts was “considerable.”

“It’s a huge loss for Georgetown students looking for something cheap and delicious to eat,” said Stephen Tranchina, 22, who graduated from the university this spring, in a social media message to The Times.

Miller Bartosz, 21, another recent Georgetown graduate, told The Times, “Wingos was a place that represented some of my formative moments at Georgetown. I made friends there, recovered from hangovers there, and just genuinely always had a grand old time.”

“The food was a delight and so are the memories — definitely tough to see it go. God bless them and their Sriracha wings,” wrote Mr. Bartosz.