Wingo’s Fire Shuts Down Wisconsin & O

A dramatic response to a fire that began at Wingo’s, the tiny eatery at 3207 O St. NW, jumping to English Rose Garden, the neighboring flower shop, blocked streets around the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and O Street June 26. More than 20 fire trucks and other fire apparatus lined the avenue from N to P Streets to battle the two-alarm fire, which threatened to spread.

D.C. Fire and EMS got the call just before 11 a.m. The department announced that the fire was knocked down by 1 p.m. after a show of overwhelming firefighting force. Two firefighters were checked out by medics — one for heat exhaustion and another for being struck by an object inside the building.

As onlookers stood on the south side of the 3200 block of O Street and on the east side of Wisconsin Avenue, firefighters attacked the fire, climbing on the roofs of businesses such as Prince & Princess, the clothing store at the corner of Wisconsin and O, which suffered significant smoke damage. Firefighters continued to check for fire in concealed spaces between the buildings and other hot spots.

The fire wrecked Wingo’s and English Rose Garden. The felines at Crumbs & Whiskers, the cat café next door, were unaffected.

Now comes the cleanup and repair phase. Wingo’s plans to rebuild. It had announced priorto the fire that another Wingo’s would take the place of the shuttered Mad Fox in Glover Park. English Rose Garden is being assisted by 1310 Restaurant at the Georgetown Inn: chef Jenn Crovato offered the use of the restaurant’s refrigerators.