Tag Archives: Afternoon (12pm-6pm)

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Charlotte, NC – Clothes dryer fire in middle school locker room is contained by sprinkler system

Practice made perfect for the student body of Randolph Middle Thursday morning; the school had two fire alarms: the first one was a drill, the second which occurred about an hour later, was real.

“We received additional calls from CMPD we had a fire in a room attached to the gym, flames in the room, the fire was upgraded. Once firefighters arrived on the scene, had light smoke showing,” said Captain Jackie Gilmore of the Charlotte Fire Department.

Firefighters said that some flammable items like cloth or paper had been left on a running drier and caught fire. “This fire did not get into the school, smoke did not get into any part of the structure.”

A working sprinkler system contained the fire, there was no structure damage. “This was part of a locker room to a back hallway, so all the smoke was contained and the fire department checked the building and said we were clear to go back in,” said Principal Brian Bambauer.

Fire officials said the timing of the drill was perfect and that the students learned first hand how important it is to know what to do in an emergency. Two employees suffered minor smoke inhalation and were treated at the school; there were no other injuries.  Investigators have labeled the incident an accident.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Dandridge, TN – Fire at monofilaments plant extinguished by sprinklers; System credited with averting disaster

A fire suppression system averted potential disaster last Thursday afternoon at the Wetekam Monofilaments USA manufacturing facility in Dandridge. Fire Chief Andy Riley reported that the department responded at 12:07 p.m. to a fire alarm at the 93,000 square foot building, where a fire had filled the machine shop with thick smoke.

“The visibility was zero inside the building, but we were able to use a thermal imaging camera to determine that the fire had been put out by six sprinkler heads that had been activated.” Based in Germany, Wetekam makes yarns that are used in the weaving, automotive, medical, upholstery, and other industries. The company has over 30 workers locally and invested several million dollars in its plant in the Jefferson County Industrial Park.

Riley said all workers were evacuated from the building but were expected to be able to return to work this week since fire damage was contained to the machine shop wall and did not affect the production line. “This was a case where the fire suppression system did the job it was designed to do,” he said. “The back wall was apparently lit up in flames when the call came in, but the sprinklers got it out quickly.”

The fire was accidental, but the cause has not been determined, the chief said. No one was injured. The machine shop was unoccupied when the fire started, but employees in the general area reported hearing a crash before smelling smoke, Riley reported.

Firefighters were on the scene for about three hours at the 956 Pine drive building clearing smoke from the interior with heavy fans. Firefighters also used a power saw to cut into the rear wall and remove damaged insulation.

Volunteer firefighters from Kansas-Talbott and Lakeway Central responded under mutual aid but were diverted to another call in their district, Riley said. New Market and White Pine volunteer firefighters then responded to the Pine Drive location. A total of 22 firefighters worked on the operation.

Wetekam, one of the largest monofilament makers in Europe, bought the Dandridge plant two years ago. The company was established in 1965.

Apartment Building, Residential

Erie, PA – Apartment fire caused by unattended candle is put out by sprinkler system

Erie firefighters were dispatched to the Alex W. Thompson apartment complex, 441 W. Third St., on a report of a fire Monday at 1:49 p.m. The fire broke out in an apartment and was caused by a candle placed next to a plastic ornamental plant, Erie Fire Inspector John Widomski said. The fire set off the building’s sprinkler system, which put out the fire, Widomski said. Widomski said there was minimal fire damage.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Saginaw, MI – Sprinkler system helps contain fire at auto repair shop

Saginaw firefighters were dispatched to a fire at the corner of Holland and East Genesee about 5:50 p.m. on Friday, March 18.

The fire occurred at Rick’s Automotive, 1935 E. Genesee, where black smoke could be seen coming from inside of the building when firefighters arrived at the scene.

A sprinkler system that was activated helped contain the fire, according to a firefighter at the scene.

Residential, Townhouse / Condominium

Middletown, NJ – Sprinkler system contains residential fire to single room; No injuries

At 3:05 PM on Wednesday March 16, 2016, the Middletown Township Fire Department was dispatched to a “fire alarm” at Building 2, Unit 210 Wedgewood Circle in the Belford section of the Township.  Approximately 25 firefighters from 3 companies of the Middletown Township Fire Department (Belford Engine, Belford Independent and Community Fire Companies), under the command of Department Deputy Chief Anthony Citaralla, responded to the scene. 

The first arriving units on the scene encountered a smoke condition in the 2 story multiple unit residential structure. The firefighters quickly located a fire in a first floor bedroom. The unit was unoccupied at the time of the incident. The residents in the adjacent units were alerted by the fire alarm system and evacuated the structure. The building’s fire sprinkler system automatically activated and contained the blaze to the single room.

Fire crews ensured that the fire was fully extinguished and used thermal imaging cameras to confirm that the fire had not extended beyond the bedrooms.

The bedroom sustained fire damage and there was smoke and water damage throughout the unit.

The Fire was declared under control by 3:30 PM. The last units cleared the scene by 5:50 PM.

There were no reported injuries during the incident. 

The fire is being investigated by the Middletown Township Fire Prevention office.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Desert Hot Springs, CA – Sprinkler system holds back attic fire at Castañeda’s restaurant

Riverside County firefighters responded to a fire at Castañeda’s restaurant in Desert Hot Springs Thursday.

At around 2:29 p.m., CalFire received a report of an active fire alarm and a smell of smoke at the restaurant, which is in the 13-900 block of Palm Drive.

First responders to the fire reported nothing showing from the exterior, but upon further inspection found a fire in the attic of the building, according to CalFire. The fire was being held back by a sprinkler system.

Firefighters were able to contain the fire by around 3 p.m., according to CalFire.

No one was hurt in the fire.

Apartment Building, Residential

Halifax, NS, Canada – Apartment kitchen fire extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

A third-floor apartment kitchen fire during noon hour left a building at 334 Parkland Dr. was extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system. Four apparatuses and 12 firefighters responded to the blaze.  The call came in at 12:54 p.m. last Wednesday, and firefighters were there shortly thereafter, Blackburn said.

“The sprinkler system worked perfectly fine, but the water flow had ramifications on that floor as well as floors below,” Blackburn said. The sprinklers were shut down within about 10 minutes, he said.

“You never want to turn (sprinkler systems) off too early. We wanted to make sure the fire had been extinguished prior to shutting any suppression systems down,” he said. The building was evacuated, but tenants were allowed to go back into apartments that weren’t affected by the fire, he said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. The room of origin was the kitchen in Apt. 310, he said.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Celina, OH – Sprinkler system helps contain fire at aluminum products plant

A fire broke out at a aluminum plant in Celina Monday afternoon, sending employees home. The fire started at Celina Aluminum Precision Technology, Inc. around 1:30 p.m.

The Celina Fire chief said the fire was contained to an area inside the building, between the steel bar joist and the roof. The sprinkler head went off and when firefighters arrived, the fire was out in about 20 minutes. They took care of hot spots for a couple more hours before workers could go back in.

Plant officials tell us first shift was sent home, and second shift was cancelled due to the fire. They hoped to have the area checked out and cleared, for third shift to come in and continue operations.

The Celina fire chief said the cause of the fire is still under investigation. Plant officials said they needed to check out their equipment before determining the damage.

College/University (on campus), Residence Hall/Dormitory

Columbia, MO – Residence hall fire extinguished by sprinkler system; Potential disaster mitigated

A fire at a Stephens College residence hall on Saturday afternoon resulted in no injuries but caused severe water damage to several units. The Columbia Fire Department was dispatched to a fire alarm at Wood Hall, 5 S. College Ave. Firefighters at the scene found heavy smoke and water coming from a sprinkler on the fifth floor.

The officer in charge upgraded the incident from an alarm to a commercial structure fire. A total of six units responded to the incident. An investigation revealed a fire in an apartment on the fifth floor activated the building’s sprinkler system. The sprinkler extinguished the fire, which didn’t spread to other units. The fire department is still investigating the cause of the fire. No damage estimates were available as of 5 p.m. Saturday.

Storage / Warehouse, Warehouse

San Leandro, CA – Fire at warehouse with polystyrene foam contained with help from sprinklers

Firefighters contained a 1-alarm blaze to a warehouse in San Leandro Wednesday evening with the help of the building’s sprinkler system. Alameda County Fire Department crews were dispatched a commercial warehouse in the 2400 block of Polvorosa Avenue at 5:33 p.m.

Blocks of polystyrene foam were burning and filling the structure with a large volume of black smoke, but a sprinkler system stopped the spread of the fire until firefighters arrived. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.