All posts by viking210

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Evans, GA – Tractor fire at construction business doused by sprinkler system

A tractor fire at Flint Construction & Forestry, just off William Few Parkway, was out pretty quickly.  In fact, according to fire crews, the sprinkler system did most of their work before they even arrived.  There was only one employee in the building and they alerted the alarm company, which then called for firefighters.  They don’t know what caused the tractor to catch fire but believe it may have been some sort of electrical short.  There were no injuries or significant damage to report.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Mesquite, NV – Machinery fire at manufacturing facility extinguished by sprinkler system

*** NO MEDIA COVERAGE – Fire Department Reported ***

E-11, R-11, R-31, Beaver Dam E-11 responded to a manufacturing facility on Turtleback Road for a report of fire signals with water flow alarm. Arrived to no smoke or fire. Employee advises they had a fire in a machine and he believes it has been extinguished by the sprinkler system. Hose lines pulled into structure and remaining smoldering fire put out. Business advised to maintain fire watch until suppression system restored and to have electrician inspect all machinery impacted by water flow. Damage limited to machine with no extension to the structure.

Apartment Building, Residential

Charlottesville, VA – Arson fire at apartment building doused by sprinkler system

Four people were displaced by a fire in a Charlottesville apartment Thursday. The fire occurred shortly after 4:30 p.m. on the 800 block of Mallside Forest Court. According to the Albemarle County Fire Marshal’s Office, this is an arson case. The Albemarle County Police Department has arrested 31-year-old Cleve Kush on a charge of burning or destroying a dwelling.

A sprinkler system in the apartment limited the size of the fire and the damage it caused. The Fire Marshal’s Office reports the damage estimate is about $1,200. The investigation into the arson is underway. One person was taken to the hospital for possible smoke inhalation. The Red Cross is helping the apartment residents.

Other Business, Recycling / Waste Facility

Springfield, MA – Recycling center fire kept from spreading by sprinkler system

City firefighters quickly extinguished a blaze at a Waste Management facility in East Springfield Thursday night. There were no injuries or major damage tied to the fire, which was reported at 8:17 p.m. at the automated material handling recycling center at 203 Tremont St.

“It ends up being a giant trash fire,” said Dennis G. Leger, executive aide to Springfield Fire Commissioner Joseph A. Conant. The facility’s sprinkler system kept the fire from spreading until crews arrived to extinguish the blaze, he said.

The fire wasn’t suspicious. It apparently began when a spark from a shredding operation at the recycling center ignited a bale of trash, Leger said.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Poplar Bluff, MO – Sprinkler system quickly puts out fire at Briggs and Stratton facility

A fire broke out at Briggs and Stratton in Poplar Bluff Thursday morning around 10:30 a.m. Some welding sparked dust to catch fire near a paint oven, according to the Poplar Bluff Fire Department.

The sprinkler system activated and the fire was quickly put out. Employees were evacuated. Firefighters worked to ventilate the area before letting employees back in to the facility. No one was injured.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Falls Church, VA – Fire at bakery contained with help from sprinkler system

The fire happened at Jenin Pastry at 5820 Seminary Road in Falls Church around 9:20 p.m., according to officials. When crews got to the scene fire was coming from the back of the two-story building. Firefighters conducted an aggressive fire attack and were able to put out the fire quickly. The sprinkler system went off, which helped the fire to stay in the kitchen area, Fairfax County officials said.

The smoke alarm was also activated. Nobody was injured in the fire. The fire is still under investigation, however has been deemed as accidental. Officials say the hot stove cook top was too close to the shelf and caught on fire.

Apartment Building, Residential

Battle Ground, WA – Sprinkler system suppresses apartment fire; No injuries and damage minimized

A fire sprinkler successfully suppressed an apartment fire Tuesday afternoon in Battle Ground, minimizing potential damage. Nobody was home when the fire broke out in a unit at Meadow View Apartments, said Clark County Fire & Rescue Division Chief Mike Jackson. Firefighters were called to 611 N.W. 20th Ave. at 2:49 p.m.

The oven had been left on the clean setting and ignited items on the stove, Jackson said. “The fire was luckily controlled with a single sprinkler head before we got there,” he said. There was minimal fire and water damage, though a neighboring unit may have some water damage, Jackson said. Without the sprinkler, the fire could have grown to be much worse and caused more damage. Fire sprinklers are activated by heat, going off when it reaches around 165 degrees.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Dubuque, IA – Fire in paint booth at manufacturing facility controlled with help from sprinkler system

Firefighters say a fire inside a paint booth at a Dubuque warehouse Tuesday was contained fairly quickly but still caused significant damage.

Dubuque Fire Chief Rick Steines said firefighters received a report at 9:49 a.m. Tuesday at a warehouse at 1111 Purina Drive. He said the blaze originated in a paint booth used by manufacturing company Andersen Eagle and was contained to the machinery.

Steines also said there were two 50-gallon barrels of acetone in the booth that started to burn. No injuries have been reported.

Steines said the booth’s sprinkler system helped contain the fire and firefighters were able to run a hose into the booth to extinguish the blaze. He said it was contained within about 15 minutes but crews stayed on scene to ensure the fire was out and to assess damage and help get the sprinkler system back on line.

Steines said the paint booth’s safety functions worked properly and the damage was contained to the booth.

“There’s no damage estimate yet, but there was pretty significant damage to the paint booth and some water damage from the sprinklers.,” Steines said.

He said the fire was paged out at a two-alarm level at first. But since it was contained quickly, the additional crews were back in service a short time later.

Hospital/Care Facility, Other - Hospital/Medical

Brainerd, MN – Sprinklers activate to help control intentionally set fire at behavior health center

A subject allegedly lit her bed on fire and ran away from the behavioral health inpatient unit – also known as the grace unit – at Essentia Health-St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Brainerd, leaving hospital staff scrambling to make sure patients were safe.

Brainerd police and fire personnel were dispatched to a fire alarm at 7 p.m. Monday at the hospital, 523 North Third St., Brainerd. While en route to the alarm, it was reported a bed was lit on fire and it appeared the fire was intentionally set to facilitate an escape from the locked unit at the hospital.

Dr. Pete Henry, chief medical officer of the central region and an emergency room physician at Essentia Health-St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Brainerd, said hospital staff immediately contained the fire and ensured patients’ safety. The locked unit was closed down and 12 patients were moved to other parts of the hospital. Thirteen patients on the telemetry unit and 13 patients from the surgery unit also were moved to different locations to ensure their safety.

Henry said water from the sprinkler system damaged three floors below the behavioral health inpatient unit: the telemetry unit, inpatient surgery unit and the outpatient cardiovascular unit. Henry said the sprinkler system also was damaged during the incident and was repaired about an hour later.

Henry did not know what the estimated cost was from the fire and water damage from the sprinkler system. “It’s too soon to tell,” he said. Henry said all the service areas damaged Monday night at the hospital are up and running, except the inpatient care in the grace unit. Henry hopes the unit will be up and running as soon as possible, but he could not say an exact date. Henry said the dozen patients were moved to another location at the hospital or to another mental health facility in the state.

Essentia Health has two locations for its psychiatry patients, one on the fourth floor at the hospital and another at the Brainerd clinic. The clinic provides outpatient psychiatry services, including psychotherapy, medication management and electroconvulsive therapy services for children, adolescents and adults. “In the meantime we won’t be accepting any new patients,” Henry said of the behavioral health inpatient unit.

Brainerd police received additional information about a suspect and learned the suspect and potentially two accomplices had fled the area in a vehicle. The information about the suspects and a vehicle description was sent out in a state-wide alert. At about 11 p.m., authorities learned police in Becker had located the vehicle and three occupants were taken into custody without incident.

One of the parties involved was identified as a 17-year-old juvenile female from Brainerd. She was arrested and transported to a juvenile detention center in Grand Rapids. The two other individuals were identified as Raegan Sjolund, 18, and Jonathn Erickson, 24. Sjolund and Erickson were brought to the Sherburne County Jail where they are awaiting transfer to the Crow Wing County Jail.

Brainerd police report the juvenile and Sjolund were each arrested for damaging property, escaping from custody and first-degree arson. Erickson was arrested for damaging property and first-degree arson.

This incident will be referred to the Crow Wing County Attorney’s Office for review pending formal charges. The investigation remains ongoing and anyone with additional information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Brainerd Police Department at 218-829-2805.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Redmond, OR – Sprinkler system credited with containing fire at assisted living facility

A southwest Redmond assisted living facility was hit by a smoky fire early Tuesday that prompted evacuation of over a dozen residents – but the situation could have been far worse, if not for the building’s fire alarm and sprinkler systems, officials said.

Redmond Fire and Rescue was called out around 12:35 a.m. to a reported structure fire at The Heights Assisted Living, at 3000 SW 32nd Street, said Fire Marshal Traci Cooper. Crews arrived to find the first floor of the facility’s southern wing filled with smoke.

The building is equipped with a fire alarm system that provided early detection and warning of the blaze, the fire marshal said. A fire sprinkler system activated, containing the fire to a mechanical room.

Firefighters quickly finished putting out the blaze while staff and Redmond police officers evacuated the first and second floors of the south wing.

Initially, 14 residents were evacuated to a neighboring nursing home, Cooper said. Residents from the second floor were allowed to return, while the seven from the first floor were to remain at the nursing home until repairs are made and resulting hazards are evaluated, Cooper said.

There were no reported injuries, she said, thanks to the alarm and sprinkler systems and the quick response from staff and first responders. A damage estimate was being compiled.

The fire was found to have been caused by storage of combustible items too close to a natural gas-fired water heater, the fire marshal said, urging everyone to make sure you keep three feet of clearance around heat sources and combustible items.

Three engines, a medic and 10 career firefighters were involved in the incident, and Oregon State Police also provided mutual-aid assistance, Cooper said.