Category Archives: Grocery Store / Super Center

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Yuma, AZ – Fire in grocery store storage room extinguished by sprinkler system

In one of three fires that happened in Yuma over the weekend, a sprinkler system at a grocery store extinguished a fire Friday afternoon that started in a storage room. Yuma Fire Department spokesman Mike Erfert said that at about 1 p.m. a water flow alarm was received, indicating the fire sprinkler system had activated inside the Del Sol Market, located at 367 W. 16th St.

Erfert said firefighters responded to the scene and quickly made entry into the building, where they found that a fire had been extinguished by an activated sprinkler head. Firefighters ensured the fire was completely out and assisted with clean-up. Damage was limited to the exhaust fan that had caught fire.

“Fire sprinkler systems can keep fires from spreading and can also extinguish them,” Erfert said. Erfert explained that the fan was located in the ceiling of a storage/utility room and could have easily caused serious damage, disrupting operations of the market, if it had not been extinguished by the nearest sprinkler head.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

East Hampton, NY – Sprinkler system helps contain fire at grocery store

Stop and Shop in East Hampton Village reopened Wednesday evening after a fire broke out in a mechanical room hours earlier. 

East Hampton Fire Department Chief Richard Osterberg Jr. said a sprinkler system helped to contain the fire, which appeared to have been caused by debris, such as cardboard, that had been placed too close to a generator.

Employees at the grocery store at 67 Newtown Lane called 911 when they saw smoke, which had spread to the main part of the store, the chief said. They got customers out of the building, he said. Simultaneously, police dispatchers received a call from the alarm company about an automatic fire alarm that had been activated. Smoke was coming out of the back of the store, though it was hard to see because it is up against trees in Herrick Park, he added.

Gerry Turza, the second assistant chief, was the first chief to arrive, and he began “an aggressive interior attack” of the fire, Chief Osterberg said. Within 15 minutes, firefighters used 350 feet of hose to douse the flames “before damage really spread,” he said. Only some of the contents of the room, which also contains refrigerator compressors and circuit breakers, were damaged. The building itself was not compromised.

Chief Osterberg notified the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, which oversees grocery stores, because there was a risk of food contamination from the smoke that spread to the store. He said a representative was to visit the store from the Brooklyn office and would have to sign-off on the reopening.

A Stop and Shop representative could not immediately be reached, but an employee at the store Wednesday evening said it had reopened around 6:30 p.m.

Managing the fire scene was no easy task, as the store is located in the middle of the village business district, off the busy Reutershan parking lot, with many cars and people coming and going, the chief said. The East Hampton Village Police Department was a tremendous help, he said, in closing off the parking lot to additional cars and keeping the entrances open for fire trucks to get through. “P.D. was really phenomenal,” he said. 

The Stop and Shop staff of about 20 was also helpful; they didn’t panic, they evacuated the building, and then stayed together in the parking lot so that they could all be accounted for and there was no question whether firefighters needed to search for anyone. “They have a plan in place that they do run practice on,” the chief said. 

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Knoxville, TN – Grocery store fire put out by sprinkler system; Store quickly returns to normal operations

Fire crews filled the parking lot at a North Knoxville grocery store Monday night after a vent fire in a back bathroom filled the store with smoke. The call came just before 10 p.m. at Kroger, 2217 N. Broadway, in the Broadway Shopping Center. Crews say the fire appeared to have started accidentally in an electrical vent in a back bathroom. The store’s sprinkler did its job and put the fire out.

The store filled with smoke and 20 people were evacuated. Investigators say no one was injured. Knoxville Fire Department spokesman Capt. D.J. Corcoran says fire inspectors were called to the scene to address inventory storage practices as store stock was blocking the cutoff for the sprinkler system.

The store later returned to normal operations

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Jerome, ID – Fire officials credit sprinkler system after early morning fire at market

Jerome fire officials are crediting a store’s fire suppression system for preventing what could have been a major disaster Sunday.

According to the City of Jerome fire crews were called to Ridley’s Family Market at around 6 a.m. to a report of a fire. Jerome Police arrived and found smoke and fire in a back room not open to the public. The store was quickly evacuated before fire crews arrived on scene. The fire spread quickly with help from combustible material inside the store. But, within several minutes the sprinkler system kicked in and halted the spread of the blaze.

Once fire crews arrived they searched for any hidden fires and didn’t find any. Investigators believe the fire was accidental. Officials say that the business was able to open several hours after the fire thanks to the sprinkler systems. The City of Jerome says this is the second building saved by a sprinkler system in the last 18 months.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Rapid City, SD – Fire at Safeway store held in check by sprinkler system; Store opens next day

According to a release from the Rapid City Fire Department, firefighters were summoned about 5:44 a.m. on Christmas Day to a fire alarm at the Safeway store, at 2120 Mount Rushmore Road. A fire in the deli area had activated two sprinkler heads, which kept the fire down until firefighters could douse the flames.

Some produce had to be discarded because of smoke exposure, and Oliver White, the department’s spokesman, said there was a small amount of water damage, but he added that the sprinklers were effective in keeping the small fire from spreading. The store was able to open the next day.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Shawnee, KS – Sprinkler system helps minimize damage in fire at Hy-Vee store

Shortly before 7 a.m. Saturday, a fire broke out in the deli kitchen area of the Shawnee Hy-Vee. Firefighters say workers were setting up for the morning buffet, when a hot steno lighter was put in storage. It spilled and caught fire.  Employees tried to extinguish the fire and a sprinkler inside the store did activate.  Fire Marshall Cory Sands says the fire was put out fairly quickly, but there is extensive smoke damage throughout the store.  Sands says all opened food will be thrown out, with a value of about $300,000.

A quick staff response – and sprinkler activation – helped save over $1 million in food and items. The store was evacuated, and no injuries were reported.  The Department of Agriculture has been called. They will have to inspect the store before it re-opens. Sands says he expects the store will be able to re-open this afternoon.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Bloomington, IL – Sprinkler system limits damage in early morning fire at Kroger grocery store

It was a slightly later open than usual for the Kroger grocery store at 1502 N. Main Street in Bloomington on Friday. A Kroger spokesman confirmed there was a small fire that broke out in a manager’s office. Spokesman John Elliott said the fire activated the sprinkler system and there was no damage.

Bloomington Fire Department spokesman Stewart Blade said crews were called to the store at 5:15 a.m. The store has since reopened. Blade said the cause of the fire is under investigation.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Mt. Pocono, PA – Daily operations unaffected at Walmart after sprinklers activate to control early morning fire

No injuries or significant damage were reported in a fire occurring shortly before 6:30 a.m. Monday at the Mount Pocono Walmart, said Walmart corporate spokesperson Erin Hoffman. An HVAC unit malfunction started the fire, activating the sprinkler system which then damaged a small amount of store products in a back room, said Hoffman. The store was closed from 6:30 to 9 a.m., but daily operations otherwise will not be affected.

 

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Flushing, NY – Sprinkler system knocks down fire in supermarket basement

A fire broke out in the basement of a supermarket in Flushing late Wednesday morning, the FDNY said. The Fire Department received a report of a manhole fire at about 10:51 a.m., according to an FDNY spokesman.

The manhole may be connected to the basement of the building of the H&Y Marketplace, located at 150-51 Northern Blvd., the spokesman said. There were elevated carbon monoxide readings as high as 700 parts per million, but the sprinkler system activated and the fire was knocked down at about 12:19 p.m., the spokesman said.

Con Edison shut off the power and it was evaluating the air quality to make sure that people remain safe, the spokesman added. There were no reported injuries and the FDNY was still actively working on the scene, he said.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

LaGrange, GA – Fire at Piggly Wiggly grocery store controlled by sprinkler system

Police and fire personnel responded to a fire about 6 a.m. Tuesday at the Piggly Wiggly grocery store at 1861 Roanoke Road. No one was injured in the blaze, which triggered the evacuation of the store’s employees. No customers were inside the building at the time, according to Chris Taylor, a public information officer for the LaGrange Fire Department.

LaGrange fire and police, along with the Troup County Sheriff’s deputies, responded to the scene. Initially, emergency dispatchers received calls that someone was possibly trapped in the room, but those reports turned out to be false, Taylor said. Taylor said the fire started in the back portion of the store in a utility area.

“There was a problem with the backup generator in the mechanical room,” he said. The fire was controlled by an automatic sprinkler system that activated, but firefighters still had to use hoses and water to extinguish secondary fires that also burned.

Officials with Georgia Power also responded to the scene, Taylor said. The LaGrange Fire Department is investigating the fire, but Taylor said no foul play is suspected and the preliminary cause of the blaze is expected to be either mechanical or electrical. Taylor expected a full report and information to be released by LFD this afternoon.

Taylor said the fire did not burn anywhere but the utility room. “We’re glad that the store wasn’t in regular operation when the fire occurred,” Taylor said. The Daily News attempted to call Piggly Wiggly several times this morning for comment, but its phone lines were busy.