Category Archives: Hotel / Restaurant

Virginia Beach, VA – Boardwalk restaurant fire doused by sprinkler system

A restaurant in Red Mill Walk caught on fire early this morning. The Virginia Beach Fire Department responded to a fire alarm at 2277 Upton Drive around 1:22 a.m., a news release from Battalion Chief Eric Wilkerson says. Fire crews forced their way into Suite 714 — home to Back Bay Gourmet, according to Red Mill Commons’ website — and found the fire in a storage room had been extinguished by the sprinklers. The fire was under control at 1:49 a.m. as the crews worked on controlling the sprinkler system and salvage, the release says. Smoke, fire and water damage was contained to the restaurant. No one was hurt, and the fire remains under investigation.

Cookeville, TN – Dryer fire at Hampton Inn controlled by sprinkler system; No injuries

A small fire in a commercial dryer early this morning at the Hampton Inn hotel on Interstate Drive kept the Cookeville Fire Department busy. The call came in around 6:40 a.m., and fire crews were on the scene until after 9 a.m., Lt. Benton Young said.

“At about the same time we got the call, a Cookeville police officer who was refueling at a gas station nearby on Jefferson Avenue noticed smoke coming from the hotel and responded to the location as well,” Lt. Young said.

When firefighters arrived on the scene, he said, smoke could be seen coming out the front lobby doors, all the way from the laundry room located farther back inside the building. Guests of the hotel were evacuated while firefighters assessed and responded to the situation.

“There was a lot of smoke. We had to use thermal cameras in the laundry room just to see to get to the source,” he said.

That source proved to be only one commercial dryer that appeared to have several mop heads drying inside it, firefighters reported.

The hotel’s sprinkler system activated when the dryer fire began to smoke, and the blaze was contained to that appliance.

After firefighters arrived, they worked quickly to extinguish the blaze.

“We didn’t have to put a whole lot of water on it to put it out, maybe 15 or 20 gallons,” Lt. Young said.

The tasks that followed, however, included resetting the fire alarm system, getting the abundance of smoke dissipated from the building and verifying that all of the hotel occupants were evacuated and accounted for. All four Cookeville stations responded to the scene.

No one was reported injured in the incident. Capt. Matt White said he expected the business to reopen later this morning following the incident.

 

Daytona Beach, FL – Mattress fire at residential building put out by sprinkler system

Firefighters responded to a mattress fire at the Three Oaks Inn at 331 S. Palmetto Ave. about 12:40 a.m. Wednesday. The fire is believed to have started because of someone smoking in bed, Daytona Beach fire spokeswoman Julie Maddux said. The building’s sprinkler system put the fire out. About 35 people were displaced. The displaced residents were assisted by the Red Cross.

Westminster, CO – Damage from restaurant fire minimized thanks to sprinkler system

A sprinkler system helped prevent major damage after an electrical fire in Westminster. Firefighters responded to an alarm at 11300 Westmoor Circle just before 10 p.m. Wednesday. Security at the building at the site reported smoke an electrical smell.

When crews arrived they found a room in the Oasis Café filled with smoke and the sprinkler head activated. The firefighters quickly extinguished the remaining fire, shut off the sprinkler system and ventilated the first floor of the building.

The fire was started by a series of lithium batteries that were in a large charger. However, because of the building sprinklers the damage was limited to the charger, minor smoke damage and water damage in the immediate area of the sprinkler head. According to the fire department, there could have been a much larger fire without the sprinkler system.

Beaufort, SC – Fire at Hilton Garden Inn extinguished by sprinkler system

A fire at Hilton Garden Inn on Thursday was extinguished by the hotel’s sprinkler system by the time firefighters arrived, according to a news release. Firefighters responded to the fire about 4:30 p.m. and found all of the hotel’s tenants evacuated to the parking lot. A room on the third floor caught fire before the sprinklers doused the flames.

All 115 hotel rooms were occupied at the time of the fire, the release said, The full house was related to Friday’s graduation ceremony at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island. “The hotel was filled with Marine recruit families and friends, and they all got out fine,” Beaufort-Port Royal Fire Chief Sammy Negron said in the release. “It was a good ending to a potentially very bad situation.”

Tenants in 47 rooms had to be relocated until the rooms affected by the sprinkler system could be cleared for use, Negron said.

Sarasota, FL – Arson fire at nightclub is prevented from spreading by sprinkler system

Sarasota deputies are looking for a man who they say set fire to a gay nightclub Sunday morning.  Surveillance video shows a man wearing a dark long-sleeved shirt and light colored shorts approaching Throb Nightclub, 2201 Industrial Blvd., at 9 a.m. Sunday, according to a release.

The man walked up to the door carrying a gas can and unsuccessfully tried to light the building on fire with a lit cigarette, deputies said. He walks away and then re-approaches the business, successfully lights the fire and walks away again.  The sprinkler system prevented the fire from spreading, according to a report.

When the flames cleared, Throb Nightclub had suffered $10,000 in fire and water damage. Owner Brian Zickafoose wasted no time making repairs, and opened the club for a regular Sunday evening just hours after the flames had been put out.

Anyone with information can contact criminal investigations at 941-861-4934 or the State Fire Marshal’s arson hotline at 877-662-7766. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers of Sarasota County by calling 941-366-TIPS (8477) or online at www.sarasotacrimestoppers.com

Des Plaines, IL – Sprinkler system contains electric fire at Comfort Inn hotel

An activated sprinkler system in the Comfort Inn hotel, 2175 Touhy Ave., Des Plaines, last Friday helped keep a fire in a basement storage room from spreading, which could have caused more damage and possibly injuries, according to Des Plaines Fire Chief Alan Wax.

Firefighters who were called to the scene at 6:15 p.m. were able to extinguish the blaze within 15 minutes and after the building was ventilated, occupants were able to return to their rooms about 90 minutes later.

Shortly after firefighters arrived on the scene, they found smoke throughout the basement with “extremely heavy smoke and some fire” in the storage room. At the same time, fire personnel went from room-to-room on all of the hotel’s floors confirming that no one was present as hallways were also filling with smoke.

According to Wax, one sprinkler head had activated over the fire. This contained the blaze. It also activated the automatic alarm signal that summoned the fire department. The fire caused considerable damage to stored tables, chairs and other items in the storage room as well as electrical equipment. There was little structural damage and no injuries were reported. The hotel remained open after the incident.

Cause of the fire, investigators determined, was arcing from a large electrical feed. “This was another great save by an automatic fire sprinkler system,” said Wax.

Montrose, CO – Fire at airport restaurant put out with help from sprinkler system

A small fire broke out at the Montrose Regional Airport Wednesday morning. The airport’s Director of Aviation tells us it happened early Wednesday morning in the kitchen of a restaurant inside the terminal.

No one was inside the kitchen at the time of the fire and the sprinkler system helped put it out. The airport is still operating as normal. There was minimal damage to property and no threat to public safety. Airport operations were not impacted and cleanup is underway.

County Manager Ken Norris says they hope to have the restaurant back open by Saturday for their Tribute to Aviation event.

Sunrise Beach, MO – Fire at popular Lake of the Ozarks restaurant limited by sprinkler system

Cannon Smoked Saloon caught fire and suffered smoke damage on Labor Day morning. The fire is not suspicious, according to Sunrise Beach Assistant Fire Chief Jeremy Criner.

Cannon Smoked Saloon owner Ron Duggan is already coordinating restoration and hopes the restaurant will be open within three to four weeks. Duggan, while waiting for the official investigation to conclude, is confident a cigarette butt was to blame for the blaze.

“We have cans outside for people to extinguish cigarette butts, but apparently someone used one of our barrel flower pots in front,” Duggan said. The cigarette likely smoldered overnight and caught the front of the building on fire sometime in the early morning.

“The area of the fire origin was in a planter in front of the building,” Asst. Chief Criner said. “But, we have not yet determined the exact ignition source, although we are leaning towards a cigarette butt. We have, however, determined there were no electrical issues in that portion of the outside of the building.”

The Sunrise Beach Fire Protection District received a 911 call from a passerby just after 7 a.m. Firefighters responded immediately bringing the fire under control within 10 minutes.

During the overhaul, firefighters found the fire extended into the attic. “Fortunately for us and the owners, Ron and Nichole Duggan, there were fire sprinklers in the attic that were activated and they put out the attic fire,” Assistant Fire Chief Criner said. “This is a shining example of what a fire suppression system can do as far as the ability to quickly extinguish fire. Had there not been fire sprinklers in the attic, the damage would have been much more extensive. Anytime you have sprinkler system in any building, whether it is residential or commercial, the ability to quickly suppress the fire brings huge benefits for all the occupants that could potentially be harmed.”

Once firefighters determined the fire was extinguished, they shut down the sprinkler system to eliminate further water damage. Most of the fire damage was to the exterior front side of the building and inside the attic. There was also water and smoke damage throughout the building.

This is the second time a restaurant of the same name has caught fire. In 2011, the Duggans lost the first Cannon Smoked Saloon in an accidental fire, along with many family antiques holding significant sentimental and monetary value. The restaurant, then located on Highway F in Sunrise Beach, was a total loss. Cannon Smoked quickly re-opened at the Indian Rock Golf Course while acquiring and remodeling the current building for a permanent home at the intersection of Highway 5 and Lake Road 5-39.

Duluth, GA – Cooking fire at Extended Stay America hotel extinguished by sprinkler system

A Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services spokesman said firefighters were called to the Extended Stay America at 3390 Venture Parkway at 3:38 p.m. to respond to a fire on the third floor, only to find a second fire had also broken out on the hotel’s sixth floor.

“Crews made their way up to the third floor to find that a fire had occurred inside the room and that an occupant had extinguished the fire prior to (the fire department’s) arrival,” Lt. Jerrod Barrett said. “During the firefighter’s investigation, one of the occupants of the sixth floor told (the fire department) that she may have left food on the stove inside their room.

“Crews made their way up to the sixth floor room and found a small fire that had been extinguished by the sprinkler system,” he added. Barrett said the fires did not spread to any walls or the ceilings of the rooms where they occurred. Damage in the building was mostly caused by water emitted by the hotel’s sprinkler system, he added. Investigators have not determined a cause for the fire and it remains under investigation, the spokesman said.

People who were staying on the first through fourth floors were allowed to return to their rooms, except for the occupants of one room that was damaged. Barrett said people who stayed on the fifth and sixth floors will be displaced because of the damage, however.