Category Archives: Apartment Building

Rome, NY – No injuries in overnight apartment fire doused by sprinkler system

No one was injured after a fire in a bedroom at Liberty Gardens shortly before midnight on Saturday.  Officials with the Rome Fire Department said that the fire started in a bedroom at the North Levitt Street apartment complex and was doused by the sprinkler system. Responding fire crews took a hose line to the second floor of the apartment to check for extensions.  Witnesses on the scene said that there were three children in the apartment at the time of the fire but that all three got out of the apartment safely.  Fire officials said that the cause of the bedroom fire remains under investigation.

San Francisco, CA – Sprinkler system activates to help control arson fire at apartment

Burglar sets shoe on fire in cooking pot during SF break-in — The burglar caused damage to the apartment Thursday by setting a shoe on fire in a cooking pot and triggering the residence’s sprinkler system to go off, officials said Friday.  The break-in occurred just before 8 p.m. at an apartment in the 1100 block of Laguna Street in the Western Addition.

“They put the shoe in the pot and set it on fire,” said Officer Carlos Manfredi, a spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department.  The burglar entered the apartment through a back window, Manfredi said.

Manitowoc, WI – Fire in utility closet at apartment building contained by sprinkler system

Officials say a Manitowoc apartment was damaged by fire on Tuesday night.  Crews were called to 2240 S. 42nd Street just before 6 p.m. Firefighters found that the sprinkler system was spraying water in a utility room. There was damage to the building’s main electrical feed and there was a natural gas leak.

Everyone inside the building got out safely. Firefighters eventually found a fire in a lower-unit apartment. The sprinkler system had contained it to the immediate area, and firefighters used a water extinguisher to put out the remaining fire. Crews were on the scene for about 90 minutes.

The apartment involved had fire and smoke damage, but there was no damage to other parts of the building. Firefighters say it appears that an electrical problem caused the fire, but the fire is still being investigated.

Norfolk, VA – No injuries in high-rise apartment fire contained by sprinkler system

The fire happened in a kitchen inside The Law Building at Granby and Plume streets, according to emergency dispatchers. Residents outside the building, at 145 Granby St., said it happened on the third floor. Dispatchers confirmed the fire was controlled and that there were no injuries.

Residents heard the alarm around 7:30 p.m. and left the building, though they were not officially evacuated. The sprinkler system went off in some apartments, residents said.

Louis Pingotti said power was cut to the building because of the sprinkler system. “We can’t go back in until they fix it,” said the resident of six months.   “I just want to get my things and sleep. I got work in the morning.”  He lives on the fifth floor.

“Nothing like this has ever happened before,” said Dany Gomez, who has lived there for a year with her husband and child. Their sprinkler system did not go off, she said.

West Richland, WA – Sprinkler system helps extinguish apartment patio fire

Firefighters from Benton Fire District 4 haul away charred items Monday morning from a second-floor patio at the Quail Springs Apartments on Dallas Road in West Richland.  A fire sprinkler on the patio helped extinguish the flames, said Fire Chief Bill Whealan.

Damage was limited to the outside of the unit that was empty at the time.  Investigators believe the fire started in a potted plant but are still investigating the cause.

Haverhill, MA – Sprinkler system keeps outdoor fire from spreading into apartment building

A fire in an outdoor trash container Tuesday night on Washington Street displaced residents of two apartments when sprinklers activated.

Haverhill firefighters responded to a report of fire in a trash container about 7 p.m., outside a 12-unit apartment building at 217 Washington St., said Fire Chief William F. Laliberty. He said the fire damaged a wooden window frame on the first floor, activating sprinklers.

“The sprinkler did its job protecting occupants of the building,” Laliberty told WHAV. Residents of the two bottom apartments had not been able to return home as of Wednesday afternoon, he said.

City records describe the brick building as having been constructed about 1910.

The chief said the cause of the fire is under investigation.

Leesburg, VA – Sprinkler system controls apartment fire caused by unattended candles

Two adults and two dogs were displaced from a fire in a Leesburg apartment building that started by unattended candles and spread to window treatments, according a Leesburg Volunteer Fire Company (LVFD) Facebook post.

On Wednesday evening, August 3, at approximately 11:50 p.m., Leesburg and surrounding fire companies were alerted for a structure fire at 654 Fort Evans Rd. NE.

Leesburg responded with two engine companies, one truck company, and the rescue company.

Units arrived to find a three-story garden apartment building with a small fire inside a ground floor apartment. The fire started by unattended candles and spread to some window treatments.

The majority of the fire was controlled by the sprinkler system prior to the LVFD’s arrival.

Crews ensured the fire was out and checked for extension while ventilating the smoke.

Two adults and two dogs were displaced and assisted by the American Red Cross.

One firefighter sustained an injury to the hand and was treated on scene, according to LVFD.

“The LVFC asks you to please remember – do not leave lit candles unattended!” LVFD posted on Facebook.

Moline, IL – Fire at apartment complex controlled by sprinkler system; No injuries

Around 2:30 p.m., firefighters called to 4709 61st St. found nothing showing at a two-story multi-residential apartment complex. They made entry into the apartment to find smoke all the way to the floor and an activated building sprinkler, but no fire. Ventilation was performed and firefighters found a plastic ice cooler on an electric stove.  It was determined the cooler had melted and subsequently caught on fire.

The residents of the apartment were home at the time of the fire and called 911 before evacuating the apartment. Damage to the apartment included the cabinets above the stove with fire, smoke damage throughout and water damage to the kitchen and living room area from the sprinkler system.

No injuries to residents or firefighting personnel were reported. The Moline Fire Department was assisted by Moline Police, the apartment complex maintenance staff and the Red Cross.

Madison, WI – Sprinkler system halts apartment fire caused by unattended candle

Authorities in Madison say an automatic sprinkler system helped put out an apartment fire after a candle was left burning in a bedroom on the city’s south side over the weekend.

According to the Madison Fire Department, people who live in an apartment on the 4700 block of Jenewein Rd. left the candle burning just after 11:30 a.m. Sunday while they went out to eat. Authorities say the flame from the candle set nearby clothes on fire before spreading to the window coverings.

The fire sprinkler system inside the apartment building was activated soon after the fire began to spread. According to the MFD, the fire had already been put out when firefighters got to the apartment.

Authorities say everyone was able to get out safely, but people were not able to spend the night inside of the apartment because of the damage done to the bedroom. Officials with the American Red Cross helped the residents find other places to stay.

Despite that, the MFD says minimal damage was done to the apartment because the fire was put out so quickly.