Category Archives: Residential
Avon, CO – Apartment fire doused by sprinkler system; No injuries
Lancaster, OH – Sprinkler system helps contain overnight fire at senior apartment complex; No injuries
“We had a lot of elderly patients on the second and third floors,” he said. Residents in the complex were already trying to get out as smoke started to fill the second floor hallway. Because the elevator went out, it wasn’t easy for many wheelchair dependent tenants.
“On our way in we did encounter a female in the stairwell dragging her wheelchair down,” he said.
Brighton, MI – Single sprinkler controls apartment fire; Smoke alarms had been removed
** NO MEDIA COVERAGE – FIRE DEPARTMENT REPORTED **
On February 15, 2015, the Brighton Area Fire Department was dispatched to a reported audible fire alarm in an apartment building with water leaking through to an apartment below.
When fire personnel arrived there were no signs of fire, only an external water flow alarm activating. There was a light haze of smoke in the common corridor. Fire personnel stretched a hand line to the second floor of the apartment building and forced open one apartment on the second floor finding a single residential sprinkler activated and a thick white haze of smoke/steam in the apartment. There was no active fire. Fire crews conducted a quick search of the single bedroom apartment and found a male victim unconscious in a bed.
The victim was removed from the apartment and turned over to EMS for care. The 30 y/o male was transported to the ER and treated for smoke inhalation and fully recovered from the event.
Further investigation found that a fire had occurred between an upholstered chair and a table in the living room that was caused by careless discard of smoking materials. The fire was completely extinguished by a single sprinkler system. Further examination of the apartment found that both smoke alarms located inside the bedroom and just outside the bedroom had been disabled and removed for the ceiling preventing an early warning to the lone resident.
The NFPA 13R sprinkler system in this building fulfilled its intended purpose in this building by suppressing the fire and maintained a tenable and livable condition even though the smoke alarms had been removed.
Conroe, TX – Single sprinkler extinguishes apartment cooking fire (no media coverage)
*** NO MEDIA COVERAGE — FIRE DEPARTMENT REPORTED **
The City of Conroe Fire Department was notified of an apartment fire at 1200 S Frazier St. (Park At Piney Woods Apartments) at approximately 2:34 PM on December 8, 2015.
Conroe Firefighters arrived at approximately 2:40 PM and discovered that there had been a small fire in the kitchen of one of the apartment units which activated a single sprinkler head and extinguished the fire.
There were no reported injuries to firefighters or occupants of the building. Fire damage was confined to the top of the stove and the cooking container. Water damage was confined to the apartment of origin and 2 adjacent apartments. The cause of the fire was unattended cooking and was determined to be unintentional.
This incident demonstrates the importance of a properly installed and maintained automatic fire sprinkler system. It is likely that the automatic fire sprinkler system saved hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage and property loss to the building’s owners and occupants. Further, no occupants were displaced and possible injuries and deaths to citizens and firefighters were prevented.
Automatic fire sprinkler systems have over 100 years of proven performance in protecting life and property. The City of Conroe Fire Department would like to remind the public that unattended cooking is the leading cause of residential fires in Conroe, and throughout the United States, each year. Being mindful while you cook, however, can go a long way to helping prevent these fires:
**Keep an eye on what you fry
**Be alert when cooking
**Keep things that can catch fire away from the cooking area
