All posts by viking210

Baton Rouge, LA – Sprinklers keep arson fire at high school from spreading

Two boys were arrested Tuesday on accusations of setting a fire at Glen Oaks Senior High School, which came days after a similar incident, District Six Fire Chief Joel Hancock said. The boys, a 13-year-old and 11-year-old, were arrested around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in a fire at the flooded high school determined to have been deliberately set, according to the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office.

Authorities responded to a similar incident Friday night, also determined arson, however fire investigators do not believe the juveniles in custody are also responsible for the first incident, said Baton Rouge Fire Department spokesman Curt Monte. BRFD investigators assisted District Six Fire Department Tuesday night. The two juveniles are accused of going into the shuttered school and setting about five damaged computers on fire, Hancock said Wednesday morning. Witnesses saw the boys running from the school after the fire had started, Hancock said.

The boys have been booked into juvenile detention on counts of simple arson, criminal trespassing and unauthorized entry, Monte said.  The flames caused little damage, Hancock said, but investigators determined arson was the cause. The Friday night fire at the school was also set to some old computers, Hancock said.  Adonica Duggan, a spokeswoman for the schools, said the fire on Friday triggered the school’s sprinkler system and there’s concern about water and smoke damage. She said she’s still gathering details about what additional damage might have resulted from Tuesday’s fire.

Representatives of the East Baton Rouge Parish school system and Aramark, the private company that maintains school buildings, were at Glen Oaks Senior High School at 6650 Cedar Drive Wednesday morning to assess the damage. They congregated in the school’s L building, the only building damaged by fire Tuesday night and where the fire started and was contained Friday.  The building, which has been gutted since the August flooding, had piles of electronics, computers and furniture gathered in the center hallway. Most of it looked wet and water pooled on the floor in spots. Fire damage was not readily visible.

Fifteen out of 17 buildings at the north Baton Rouge high school took in water in August. School officials are planning to reopen the school, which has been relocated across town for months, by fixing up a few of the least damaged buildings and installing several temporary buildings. A much more expensive permanent repair of the high school is slated to come after that.

The L building is one of the buildings slated to be repaired quickly. Duggan said school officials are examining the damage to see if the building can be fixed up in time for the beginning of the 2017-18 school year on Aug. 10.

Hamden, CT – Fire at university apartment complex contained with help from sprinkler system; No injuries

Three Quinnipiac University students in three apartments were displaced due to water damage after a kitchen fire in a student housing complex Tuesday evening, officials said. There were no injuries reported in the fire at the Whitney Village Quinnipiac University student housing complex at 3075 Whitney Ave.  The Hamden Fire Department was dispatched to the kitchen fire at 6:24 p.m. after being notified by the Quinnipiac security office.  Engine 5 arrived on scene at 6:26 p.m. and said students were already evacuating the building into the parking area, according to a released from the fire department. Light smoke was showing in the interior hallways and stairwell leading to the second-floor apartment, the release said.

Capt. Ed Evers reported a sprinkler activation in the kitchen of apartment six. Hamden firefighters confirmed the fire had been extinguished and checked for extension into the walls and attic area. Salvage work to contain the damage from water run-off and ventilation of the building followed, according to the release. Quinnipiac security and maintenance personnel were on scene to assist students. All three displaced students were successfully relocated by the university, officials said.

Hamden Fire Marshal Brian Dolan determined the fire ignited as a student resident was cooking on the stove top. The student attempted to control the fire with a hand-held extinguisher, but was unsuccessful. The resident in apartment six notified the building resident assistant of the fire, who in-turn notified QU security and the fire department, and assisted with the safe evacuation of students, fire officials said.

“Residential sprinkler systems, such as the one in place at this location, are an effective means of fire control and help to minimize structural damage,” fire officials said in the release. “When combined with an audible and monitored alarm system, residents have timely notification of incipient fires and a greater chance of safe building evacuation.” The Hamden Fire Marshal’s office and the Quinnipiac Safety Department work together in an on-going basis to maintain and inspect these important systems, officials said.  “We are grateful that there were no injuries reported,” Quinnipiac spokesman John Morgan said. “That is due in large part to the swift action by the Hamden Fire Department and the university’s public safety and facilities departments to extinguish the fire and contain the damage to the building, which has a fully functional fire-protection system. The three students affected by the fire have been reassigned to new units while the damaged units are being repaired.”

Hartford, CT – Sprinkler system keeps fire in check at commercial building; No injuries reported

Several tenants are assessing damage on Sunday after a fire at a commercial building that housed a church in Hartford on Saturday night.

Firefighters say flames sparked around 10 p.m. on 806 Windsor Street in the Capitol City.

Officials are saying the sprinkler system helped to keep the fire in check.

According to the Hartford Courant, there were no injuries reported.

It is not clear what started the fire or how much damage the building sustained.

Nashua, NH – Sprinkler system helps contain hotel fire to one room; No injuries reported

A fire at a hotel Sunday morning caused damage to three rooms and left three occupants displaced.

Nashua Fire and Rescue said they responded to the Temple Street Hotel at 23 Temple St. at about 9:30 a.m. after an alarm was activated.

Upon arrival, they discovered there was a fire in one of the rooms within the rooming house and smoke showing from a third-floor window in the rear of the building.

Officials said a fire sprinkler was activated that helped keep the fire contained to the room of origin until they could completely extinguish it.

The room of origin and two rooms below suffered significant water damage, and three occupants were displaced. Officials said no injuries were sustained during the blaze.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Spokane, WA – Sprinkler system helps firefighters contain fire at boat trailer builder

Spokane Fire crews responded to a report of a fire at EZ Loader Boat Trailers Friday morning.  The call came in at 8:24 a.m. Crews said initial reports stated somebody was using a cutting torch to cut something metallic. A spark caught a portion of an 8 foot by 10 foot wall on fire.  Fire crews had to pull the wall apart to get to the fire behind. Crews had to do this to keep the fire from extending to the roof.  Crews used hose lines and a pump can to extinguish the fire. Officials said the sprinkler system inside the building went off properly and contributed to keeping the fire contained to one part of the building.   No one was injured in the fire and EZ Loader Boat Trailers will continue business as normal Friday. 

Passaic, NJ – Sprinklers credited with saving apartments after fire spread from neighboring warehouse

More than a dozen families were forced out of their homes after a warehouse fire spread to nearby apartments in Passaic, New Jersey. Cell phone video of the blaze, which broke out just after 10 p.m. Monday, shows flames and smoke billowing from the warehouse on First Street as it burned for three hours.  Passaic Mayor Hector Lora arrived on scene and took to Facebook, warning residents to take precaution.  “Close your windows, make sure it’s not getting into your house,” he said. “The smoke is obviously right now one of the biggest challenges.”

Food products were being stored in the warehouse along with propane tanks, which posed a hazard to firefighters working to drown out the flames. As the fire spread, the roof of the warehouse collapsed and the flames traveled to a neighboring apartment building facing Market Street. All 13 units were evacuated.

“The five in the back of the building did have fire damage, those were the one right next to where the fire was coming out,” Fire Chief Joseph Cajzer said. “Those apartments are a little worse damage but again, the sprinklers did a good job of keeping the fire in check.” Resident Elder Antoine and his seven family members slept on cots inside of the Passaic senior center along with their neighbors.

“We grabbed everybody and left everything in the house,” Antoine said. “I went down the stairs and I looked and the house was covered in smoke.” Christian Manzanres lives in an apartment with 12 of his family members. They all ran out of the burning building. “I’m scared because I have a cat still in there I’m worried about him,” Manzanres said.

The fire was brought under control after about three hours, tenants in the neighboring apartment were rushed out with at least five units badly damaged. Two firefighters had minor injuries.  The Red Cross says it is helping 50 people with temporary lodging, food and clothing.  The surrounding five blocks in the neighborhood were without electricity.  The fire department said families who were displaced should be able to return thanks to the sprinkler system, but it will be a few days before they can do so.  The cause of the fire does not appear suspicious, but it is under investigation.

Shreveport, LA – High-rise apartment fire put out by sprinkler system

Cleanup is underway after a fire at an apartment building in downtown Shreveport.  Authorities think a trash can in a closet on the 11th floor of Fairmont Apartments caught fire.  The sprinkler system doused the fire that was reported at 5:54 p.m. Tuesday. Now Shreveport Fire Department crews are using vacuums to remove water from the high-rise on the northeast corner of Cotton at Common streets. A ventilation fan is being used to get smoke out of the building.

Hannibal, MO – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in early morning fire at rubber plant

An early Monday morning fire at Buckhorn Rubber Plant in Hannibal was ruled accidental in nature, according to Hannibal fire investigators. Hannibal Fire Department said crews were called to the plant at 3:39 a.m. for a report of a machine on fire.  HFD Investigator Mark Kempker said when firefighters arrived workers were outside the building and the fire had set off the building’s sprinkler system.  Kempker said it took firefighters about 10 minutes to put the fire out completely.  Crews stayed on scene for about an hour.  Following an investigation, Kempker said the fire was caused by an electrical malfunction in the control panel of a machine. 

Mason City, IA – Early morning fire at senior living complex controlled by sprinkler system

Officials say building safety features and a quick response kept a fire at a Mason City senior living complex from turning into a tragedy. Firefighters learned of the blaze at 5:56 a.m. Saturday at Shalom Tower II, 321 Fourth St. N.E. They were dispatched to investigate an automatic fire alarm controlled by the building’s sprinkler system. The fire was located in an apartment on the fifth floor. Crews performed search and rescue on the sixth and seventh floors, and made sure three floors — the fifth, sixth and seventh — were evacuated, according to a Mason City Fire Department statement issued Monday. The rest of the building also was evacuated. Firefighters say the blaze was contained to bedding and a bed, although there was smoke damage throughout the apartment.

Mason City Fire Marshal Jamey Medlin said the fire would have been far worse had it not been kept in check by the building’s sprinkler system. The quick actions by emergency responders, which also included the North Iowa CERT, also made a difference, he said.  “There were no life-threatening injuries to occupants of the building, and residents were able to return to their apartment(s) later that morning or by early afternoon,” he said in the statement. Owned by Good Shepherd, Shalom Tower 2 a 48-unit complex with residents who are age 55 and older.  Officials say 44 residents were assisted during the fire.

Charlottesville, VA – Early morning fire at UVA fraternity house extinguished by sprinkler system

Charlottesville first responders were dispatched to an accidental fire Saturday morning at the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity house in the 500-block of Rugby Road. The city fire marshal says it originated in the fireplace of the more than 100-year-old frat house.  A sprinkler system quickly extinguished the fire. It was discovered shortly after 6 a.m. Saturday.