Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Two injured as fire guts home of LBJ’s daughter and former governor husband Chuck Robb

Severity of blaze means cause of fire may take weeks to determine, officials say

Gustaf Kilander
Wednesday 22 December 2021 16:54 GMT
Comments
Two injured as fire guts home of Lyndon Johnson’s daughter and governor husband

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

A fire has destroyed the home of the eldest daughter of former President Lyndon B Johnson and her husband, a former senator and governor of Virginia.

The $3.4m mansion of Lynda Bird Johnson Robb, 77, and husband Chuck Robb, 82, was gutted overnight when the inferno overtook the home on Chain Bridge Road in McLean, an exclusive Virginia neighbourhood.

The mansion overlooks the Potomac River, which runs through Washington, DC, and neighbours reported seeing flames with smoke rising over the water.

Fairfax County Fire and Rescue were called to the scene at 11.30pm on Tuesday. Reports from emergency personnel suggest that the fire initially spread through the first floor of the home, but then moved on to rip apart the upper floors as well as the roof.

Officials said that two people fled the home and were taken to a nearby hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening. It remains unclear if the two people who left the home were Ms Johnson Robb and Mr Robb.

In a message to reporters, Fairfax County Fire and Rescue said on Wednesday morning that there are “currently no updates”.

“Fire investigators must complete [an] investigation before [information regarding the] cause can be released,” they added, saying that the investigation can take days or weeks because of the “severity” of the fire.

According to officials, it took firefighters three hours to get the fire under control.

According to InsideNova, Mr Robb has owned the property since 1973. He served as the governor of Virginia from 1982 to 1986 and as a senator from 1989 until 2001. He published a memoir earlier this year, In The Arena, sharing his story of going from being a Marine to a major player in Democratic politics.

Mr Robb married Ms Johnson Robb at the White House in December 1967 after having met her while serving as a social aide in her father’s administration. Former members of the US military were often assigned to the role of attending to the needs of dignitaries visiting from abroad.

He was awarded the Bronze Star for his service in the Vietnam War. He entered politics in the middle of the 1970s, working in local politics and serving on the Fairfax County Democratic Committee before becoming the lieutenant governor of Virginia in 1978.

He lost his senate seat to Republican George Allen, another former governor, in 2000.

Robb and Johnson Robb pay their respects to former Senator Bob Dole as he lies in state at the Rotunda of the Capitol on December 9, 2021
Robb and Johnson Robb pay their respects to former Senator Bob Dole as he lies in state at the Rotunda of the Capitol on December 9, 2021 (Getty Images)

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in