Charlottesville, VA – Fire at off-campus apartment building extinguished by sprinkler system

Wednesday October 3rd, 2018, at 5:28pm the Charlottesville Fire Department responded for an alarm activation at The Standard located at 853 West Main Street. The first unit was on scene in 4 minutes and 32 seconds. During the initial investigation crews discovered smoke on the 5th floor and water coming from sprinkler heads that had been activated. The sprinkler heads had been activated due to a kitchen fire which was extinguished by the sprinkler system prior to the fire department arrival. One civilian received non-life threatening injuries as a result of the kitchen fire and was transported to the hospital for further evaluation. Fourteen occupants were displaced from fire or water damage to their units and have been relocated by management to temporary housing until their units are repaired. The rapid application of water onto the fire by the sprinkler system prevented further fire damage to the interior of the structure. Three engine companies, one aerial truck company, one fire marshal and one battalion chief responded from the Charlottesville Fire Department along with one medic unit from the Charlottesville-Albemarle Rescue Squad. All units cleared the scene within 2 hours. The Fire Marshal’s Office is still investigating the cause at this time. The Charlottesville Fire Department would like to remind everyone that smoke detectors save lives. A free detector is available to all City residents. Call 434-970-3245 to schedule your smoke detector install.