Other - Retail, Retail

Iowa City, IA – Early morning laundromat fire suppressed by sprinkler system

The Iowa City Fire Department responded to a report of a fire at Laundromania, 1848 Lower Muscatine Road, at 4:55 a.m. Tuesday. Crews encountered heavy smoke coming from the building and found fire coming from a bank of commercial dryers at the rear of the laundromat. Firefighters put out the fire in the dryers and made sure the fire had not spread to the rest of the building, according to a news release. The fire department credited the building’s sprinkler system for suppressing the fire before their arrival. Other businesses in the building sustained mild smoke damage. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Other - Retail, Retail

Las Vegas, NV – Sprinklers keep pawn store fire that started on roof from spreading inside

A Super Pawn caught fire Monday night. The fire was reported around 10 p.m. in the 5900 block of West Lake Mead Boulevard, near Jones Boulevard. When firefighters arrived, there was a fire on the roof and smoke inside the building. The sprinkler system inside was preventing the fire was spreading further. There were no reports of injuries. The cause is under investigation.

Apartment Building, Residential

Portland, OR – Sprinkler activates in apartment fire that started outdoors

Ten adults, four children and five pets were displaced from their apartments as the result of a two-alarm fire that damaged six units at a Northwest Portland complex Saturday morning.

No one was injured on the fire at the complex in the 18000 block of Northwest Chemeketa Lane.

Volunteers with the Cascades Region Disaster Action Team of the Red Cross responded to provided assistance for temporary lodging, assistance to address immediate basic needs, and information about recovery services and disaster health and mental health services.

According to Tualitan Valley Fire & Rescue, at 9:45 a.m. on April 9, firefighters responded to Westridge Meadows Apartments after multiple callers reported heavy black smoke on the outside of one of the first floor units.

By the time firefighters arrived, the fire had spread from the exterior of the twelve unit building to the interior, moving rapidly to the second and third floor.

First-arriving firefighters began an aggressive fire attack, quickly knocked down flames on the exterior of the building and then working their way floor by floor extinguishing the fire. Primary and secondary searches by crews confirmed that all occupants were able to get out.

Firefighters worked for nearly 45 minutes to ensure the fire was out by extinguishing hot spots from the roof and pulling ceiling from inside apartments.

All residents were able to exit the complex safely. One person was treated for a non-fire related medical need.

The Washington County Sherriff’s Office, Portland Fire & Rescue and the Hillsboro Fire Department all assisted on the fire.

A fire investigator has determined that the fire started on a balcony, but was unable to immediate learn how. The investigator will continue conducting witness interviews and the fire remains under investigation.

The complex was equipped with a fire sprinkler system, which was activated once the fire moved inside the building. According to TVF&R, when a fire sprinkler system is present, the likelihood of injuries and costly damage is dramatically reduced. More information about fire sprinkler systems can be found at: www.tvfr.com/index.aspx?nid=144

Apartment Building, Residential

Juneau, AK – Sprinklers activate in apartment blaze; fire damage limited to one unit

Capital City Fire/Rescue responded to a fire at the Channel View Apartments on Gastineau Avenue Sunday afternoon. Assistant Fire Chief Ed Quinto said only one unit was burned. Quinto said he didn’t know if there was any damage to the building’s roof, but the unit’s front-facing windows were broken.

A woman and two children who are presumed to have been in the unit when the fire happened went to the emergency room at Bartlett Regional Hospital because of smoke inhalation. As of 8:30 p.m., the woman was in stable condition and the two children were being evaluated.

The cause of the fire is still unknown.

While residents suffered few physical injuries, most of the low-income apartments have severe water damage.

Will Noel does maintenance for the apartments. He said 17 of the building’s 22 units have water damage from the sprinkler system that went off during the fire.

Noel said he saw the woman who lives in the burned apartment as she was leaving for the hospital and that she said her outlet had caught on fire. The fire marshal hasn’t identified a cause yet.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Enderby, BC, Canada – Sprinklers activate in suspicious fire at secondary school

It’s back to school Tuesday for high school students at A.L. Fortune Secondary in Enderby following a fire in the girls’ washroom.

About 250 students and teachers were evacuated around noon on Friday after the fire broke out and caused overhead sprinklers to come on. The fire is considered suspicious.

A restoration company was called in immediately after the fire was doused to clean up the mess. However, reparation work forced the school to remain closed on Monday.

“We are pleased to have our students and staff returning to the important learning that takes place at A.L. Fortune every day,” said Carl Cooper, director of instruction.

Not all the classrooms will be open tomorrow. Cooper said one wing of the school will remain closed for a few more days, including a couple of classrooms, for construction of a new wall after asbestos was discovered in the mud used for drywall.

“Since the washroom and one classroom wall were damaged by fire and water, and the mud was no longer encapsulated, an environmental services company, Apex EHS Services, was brought in to assess the hazardous materials,” said Alice Hucul, spokeswoman for School District 83. “The asbestos was removed on Monday to WorkSafe B.C. standards. Air quality was monitored throughout.”

The district has been unable to supply an estimate of damage caused by the fire.

The RCMP continue to investigate the incident.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Danbury, CT – Sprinkler system contains flames when man’s recliner catches fire

A man was brought to the hospital after his recliner caught fire at a Danbury apartment building Sunday.

A mix of volunteer and career firefighters from Danbury responded to the eight-story building at 25 Beaver Street around 11 a.m. The fire happened in an apartment on the second floor.

“The sprinkler system put most of the fire out and the crews finished the job,” said Assistant Fire Chief Mark Omasta. “It was extinguished quickly.”
 
The man, who has not been identified, was taken to Danbury Hospital for probable smoke inhalation, which Omasta said is precautionary. He said the man was alert and conscious when firefighters brought him out of the building at 25 Beaver Street.

Firefighters also rescued the man’s cat, which is being examined by a veterinarian, Omasta said.

The building is listed online as Putnam Towers and one of the five elderly properties the Housing Authority of the City of Danbury owns and manages. It has 54 units, according to the housing authority’s website.

Omasta said the man’s apartment has water and smoke damage but the other units are OK.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Brainerd, MN – Sprinklers and staff praised for halting fire at senior assisted living facility

The Brainerd Fire Department responded to a fire Friday at Carefree Living, an assisted living facility for seniors.

Firefighters responded at 2:51 p.m. When they arrived on scene, the fire had been extinguished by the automatic fire sprinkler system and staff with a fire extinguisher, a BFD release said.

Fire crews removed smoke from the building and worked to control the water from the fire sprinkler system.

No injuries were reported.

The cause of the fire was under investigation, the release said. There was minor damage to the room the fire was in. The cost of damage was still being estimated.

Fire Chief Tim Holmes said staff and the sprinkler prevented the fire from spreading.

“This is a great example of the value of an automatic fire sprinkler system and the well-trained staff,” Holmes said.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Athol, MA – Fire at casket factory extinguished by sprinkler system

A fire that broke out at an Athol casket factory Sunday evening is considered suspicious. Athol firefighters received a call around 5:34 p.m. reporting possible smoke and flames at the Cambium Corp. casket factory at 339 Main St.

The department responded with two engines, a ladder truck and a command vehicle, and found a smoky odor on arrival, according to a department press release. Smoke was seen on the first floor, but the fire was found to have been extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system.  MedStar Ambulance assisted with evacuating one person from the neighboring building as a precaution.

Police Lt. Kevin Heath said the fire is being considered suspicious because it started outside the building in a pile of sawdust. Athol police and fire personnel continue to investigate, according to Deputy Fire Chief Jeffrey R. Parker. Orange and Royalston firefighters responded to assist, while Templeton Fire covered the Athol station

Apartment Building, Residential

Roseburg, OR – Wheelchair-bound resident OK after sprinkler system extinguishes apartment fire

Around midnight on April 8, the Roseburg Fire Department was dispatched to a fire in apartment #204 in the Grand Apartments at 730 SE Cass Ave.  Fire officials say it was contained to the studio apartment and extinguished by the building’s automatic fire sprinkler system.

The wheelchair-bound resident was found sitting on the floor when firefighters entered the room, the report said. He was evaluated for smoke inhalation and transported to Mercy Medical Center where he was released later Friday morning.

Investigators say the fire was most likely caused by the apartment’s 60-year-old resident, who discarded a cigarette in a paper-filled trash can near a kitchen cabinet. The building’s automatic sprinkler system activated within three minutes, extinguishing the flames, which had begun climbing to the ceiling of the apartment.

Apartment Building, Residential

Fargo, ND – Apartment kitchen fire quickly extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries

Firefighters here responded to a call at about 10:15 a.m. Friday, April 8, at The Fargoan building at 319 Broadway. Residents were evacuated as the Fire Department worked to clear smoke from the building, but no one was injured in the incident, according to Craig Nelson, battalion chief with the Fargo Fire Department.

Upon arrival, firefighters found a fire located in the kitchen area inside one of the units. Nelson said the building’s sprinkler system quickly put the fire in a second-floor unit of the building.  Firefighters used a hand line to extinguish the remaining fire.

No one was injured, including a number of pets reported to be in apartment units. That was a relief to Katie Perleberg, who anxiously watched from across the street as firefighters cleared smoke from the building and helped nearby businesses clean up water that had poured down from the floor above them.

Nelson said at about 10:25 a.m. that Broadway would likely be closed for about an hour as crews continued to clear the building of smoke and water. Water from the sprinkler system caused damage to the three businesses located on the lower level of the complex.  Crews helped those businesses contain the water and relocate some merchandise.

He said the cause of the fire wasn’t immediately known. The total cost of the fire loss is unknown at this time.

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