A firefighter was taken to the hospital with a minor injury on Wednesday, Aug. 12, after crews knocked down a closet fire on the third floor of a Southeast D.C. apartment building, and two cats pulled from the smoke-filled unit were given oxygen on scene.

DC Fire and EMS responded Wednesday evening to the 700 block of Brandywine Street SE, finding a three-story apartment building with smoke showing on arrival. The department classified the incident as a working fire dispatch, a designation used when a confirmed structure fire requires a full response assignment.

Firefighters traced the blaze to a closet on the third floor and extinguished it before it could spread. No residents were reported displaced.

One firefighter sustained a minor injury during the response and was transported. The department, led by Chief John A. Donnelly Sr., did not disclose the type of injury, the firefighter's unit assignment or the hospital destination.

Rescue Squad 3 located and removed two cats from the apartment. Crews fitted the animals with oxygen masks on the sidewalk. Both cats survived.

WJLA reported the cats "don't look too keen on being inside the oxygen masks" but made it through the ordeal. The DC Fire and EMS Department posted photos of the rescue on X, confirming the fire was contained and the cats were receiving care.

According to DC News Now, the department posted its update just before 5:55 p.m.

The cause of the fire has not been announced. DC Fire and EMS did not post a cause-and-origin determination as of Thursday morning.

The Brandywine Street fire follows at least two other apartment building fires in Southeast D.C. in recent weeks: a working fire at the 2600 block of 30th Street SE on Aug. 1 and a box alarm at the 3500 block of Minnesota Avenue SE on Aug. 6.

DC Fire and EMS offers free smoke alarm installations for District residents. Residents can request a home fire safety inspection by calling (202) 673-3320 or visiting fems.dc.gov.