Category Archives: Hospital/Medical Clinic

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Rossville, MD – Fire sprinklers extinguish utility room fire at medical center; No injuries reported

A fire in a utility room at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center was quickly extinguished, Baltimore County fire officials said.

Fire officials said firefighters were called around 3:09 p.m. for a fire on the third floor of the hospital in Rossville.

Fire officials said the hospital alarm system sounded and as firefighters were en route, the sprinkler system activated. Officials said firefighters found heavy smoke on the third floor and it took about 45 minutes to put out the fire.

“They were able to make quick extinguishment of the fire, the sprinklers were activated. They were able to contact that very quickly. They were working to shelter patients in place,” Baltimore County fire Capt. Len Stewart said.

Patients at the hospital were sheltered in place as fire crews worked on ventilating the facility. No injuries were reported, officials said.

“We had a fire in one of our inpatient units. It looks like it originated in one of our utility rooms, storage rooms. (I’m) delighted to say that the first responders did a magnificent job to put the fire out, patients were moved laterally as per our plans, no patients were hurt, no staff were injured, thank goodness. The fire’s out and we are cleaning up and looking to get back to full operations,” said Stuart Levine, president of MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center.

Levine told 11 News that the floor affected by the fire was where some COVID-19 patients were being treated. They have been moved to other areas at the hospital.

Firefighters said there was water damage on the second floor.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Rochester Hills, MI – Hospital sprinkler system contains fire on Thanksgiving; No injuries reported

Fire crews were dispatched Thursday morning to Ascension Providence Rochester Hospital on reports of a fire.

According to authorities, the call came in at about 8:45 a.m. and when fire crews arrived, they found smoke coming from the second floor of the building. Fortunately, the area that the fire was in was closed due to Thanksgiving.

Authorities said the hospital’s sprinkler system held the fire back until fire crews were able to extinguish the fire.

Rochester Hills Fire Department had help from fire crews from Waterford, Bloomfield Township, Troy, Oakland Township and Auburn Hills.

No one was injured during the fire.

The fire investigation will be handled by the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Philadelphia, PA – Hospital fire extinguished by fire sprinklers after man barricaded himself in room and set fire to bed sheets; No injuries reported

The emergency room at a Kensington hospital was closed Saturday after a man set a fire inside one of the rooms, police said.

A man at Temple University Hospital’s Episcopal Campus barricaded himself in a room in the emergency department and set fire to bed sheets, but no one was injured.

Police said hospital security searched the 30- to 40-year-old man at about 2:40 p.m. Saturday and placed him in a room. The man was there to receive drug treatment. Police said he barricaded himself inside and turned on oxygen tanks, then lit the bed sheets on fire.

Police said a maintenance man broke a window and the man climbed out and fought with security, but police arrived and arrested him. The emergency room was evacuated with no injuries. The blaze was extinguished and the fire marshal declared it an arson.

A spokeswoman for Temple Health said the building’s sprinkler system extinguished the fire. Patients in the ER were transported to Temple University Hospital’s Main Campus, she added. The hospital will continue sending ER patients there until the Episcopal ER can reopen.

Police said the emergency room will remain closed until repairs are completed.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Franklin, TN – Fire sprinkler extinguishes fire at unoccupied pediatric clinic; No injuries reported

A fire broke out at an unoccupied pediatric clinic in Franklin just before 9 p.m. Friday. The flames were extinguished by the building’s automatic sprinkler system.

When the sprinkler system was triggered, the fire alarms sounded, dispatching the Franklin Fire Department to the location. Those crews arrived at Pediatric Associates of Franklin – located at 570 Baker’s Bridge Avenue – and found light smoke and one active sprinkler. The sprinkler had extinguished a fire in a patient examination room before firefighters made it there.

Franklin fire investigators said the damage was limited to the room where the small blaze began.

Damage to the building is estimated to be less than $10,000. No interruption of business or care is expected for the practice.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Sioux Falls, SD – Equipment fire at hospital extinguished by fire sprinkler; No injuries reported

Authorities say a small equipment fire at a Sanford Hospital building in Sioux Falls forced staff to temporarily move some patients to a different part of the building.

The fire broke out around 11 p.m. near the radiology department on the ground floor of the medical center.

According to Sioux Falls Fire Rescue, an equipment maintenance cart started on fire, but it was extinguished by a sprinkler before firefighters arrived.

A Sanford spokesperson said patients were briefly moved from the emergency department and The Birth Place while firefighters evaluated the situation. Once the smoke in the air had been cleared, patients were returned to their rooms.

No one was hurt during the incident.

Sanford said its fire response worked “as designed.” The spokesperson said patients will not experience any disruptions due to the incident.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Detroit, MI – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire in hospital operating room

Detroit Receiving Hospital, part of Detroit Medical Center, will receive funding from the state of Michigan to repair damage caused by a fire and its sprinkler system, according to the Detroit News.

All eight operating rooms of the hospital suffered water damage after the sprinkler system was set off to extinguish the fire. 

The fire itself ignited in a single unoccupied operating room last weekend, according to the report.

“Fortunately, no patients were in surgery in any OR,” Brian Taylor, a spokesman for the Detroit Medical Center, told the News. “Our staff responded quickly, and the fire was extinguished in minutes. Three patients in pre and postop areas were safely evacuated. We are working collaboratively with [state officials] to address the area impacted.”

The hospital filed an emergency certificate of need request for $100,000 with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

West Plains, MO – Fire at healthcare facility put out by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

No injuries were reported Wednesday after a small fire at NHC Healthcare in West Plains.

A report from the West Plains Fire Department says firefighters arrived just before 3 pm and found smoke in one of the rooms. An employee told responders that she was by the heater when she heard a popping sound and smelled a burning plastic scent. After unplugging the unit, the employee remained in the room for over a minute and didn’t notice any smoke or fire from the unit.

The building sprinkler system put out the fire.

The employee then made her way down the hall when a resident call light came on and the resident was yelling fire, according to the report.

No injuries were reported.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Salem, OR – Fire at Health Hospital put out by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

Firefighters say sprinklers extinguished a fire in a building at Salem Health Hospital Thursday morning.

According to Salem Police Department, smoke was reported in Building B of the Salem Health Hospital at 6:30 a.m.

The Salem Fire Department, Salem Health officials and the Salem Police Department responded to the scene to locate the source of the smoke.

Investigators say the fire was located in an elevator shaft on the south side of Building B and the smoke affected several floors of the building. The building has smoke and water damage.

Patients in the building were relocated and patient care was not effected. The building is mostly used for administrative purposes.

All procedural appointments at Salem Health Hospital are canceled Thursday and will be rescheduled.

Winter Street Southeast was closed between Mission Street Southeast and Bellevue Street Southeast while crews responded. It reopened at around 11:45 a.m.

The Emergency Room at Salem Hospital remains open.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Muskogee, OK – Fire caused by malfunctioning popcorn machine controlled by sprinkler system

A Sunday afternoon fire in the concession area of Apex Cinema, 2812 W. Shawnee Bypass, caused the theater’s evacuation and sent two people to the hospital.

The fire began shortly after 5 p.m. due to a malfunctioning popcorn machine, which in turn set off the building’s sprinkler system, said Muskogee Fire Captain Brian Fuller.

“The system extinguished the fire and flooded the front part of the building there with water,” Fuller said. “We got the sprinkler head shut down, removed the smoke from the building and shut the power off to that area.”

Fuller estimated the theater would be shut down for “several days” while cleanup takes place.

Muskogee Emergency Medical Service Community Relations Coordinator Trish German said two people were transported from the scene in ambulances. Their conditions and the nature of their injuries remain unknown, German said.

Apartment Building, Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic, Residential

Kalamazoo, MI – (Fire Marshal Reported) Two fires suppressed by fire sprinkler systems across Kalamazoo

On Wednesday May 15, 2019 sprinklers save the day for two different locations in Kalamazoo. A kitchen fire was quickly doused with limited  damage at a multistory multifamily residence. A full alarm assignment was quickly reduced to a single engine company upon learning the fire was quickly suppressed by the sprinkler system as Kalamazoo was battling another structure fire. 

Later in the night a fire in the sterilization unit of Bronson Methodist Hospital was quickly suppressed by a single sprinkler head limiting direct fire damage.