Tag Archives: Alabama

Huntsville, AL – Sprinkler system activated for fire at apartment complex; No injuries reported

Multiple units responded to a structure fire in Huntsville Saturday morning.

Huntsville Fire and Rescue said multiple units responded to 2130 Old Fairway Road NW just before 7:30 a.m. This is located at the Cottages at Watercress, just off Jeff Road north of US-72.

HFR told News 19 that a small fire in one of the third-floor apartments triggered the sprinkler system. The sprinklers did their job, extinguishing the fire. Crews entered the apartment, checking to see if the fire had spread elsewhere, but no further fire was found.

The apartment resident is likely to be displaced temporarily, but nobody was injured.

Montgomery, AL – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire at apartment complex; No injuries reported

Pike Road firefighters say a fire Sunday could have been much worse if not for the apartment’s sprinkler system.

According to the Pike Road Fire Department, Capt. David Hughes, the fire happened at the Stone Park Apartment complex. When firefighters arrived on the scene, the fire had been extinguished by the sprinkler system. Firefighters deactivated the sprinkler system and began cleaning efforts.

No one was injured during the fire, according to Hughes.

Additional details surrounding the fire have not been released.

Gasden, AL – Sprinkler system helps put out kitchen fire at group home; No injuries reported

A bad situation Saturday morning could have been a tragic one, according to Rainbow City firefighters, when a kitchen fire started in a group home.

Firefighters responded to a fire alarm at the home, Nick Hill of the RBC Fire Department said in a press release, and while en route, they received an update that a heat/smoke alarm and a sprinkler system at the home had activated.

Rainbow City Dispatch told firefighters a caller said grease had boiled out of a pot onto a stove, starting the fire.

“Upon arriving on scene we found smoke exiting the structure,” Hill said. Crews went to work to locate anyone who might be in the structure and to battle the blaze, he said.

“Search and Rescue crews found that there was a bed-bound subject within the home,” Hill said. That person was safely brought out of the home.

Fire fighting crews found a small fire on the stove in the kitchen, he said, but thanks to the activation of the sprinkler system, there was minimal damage.

“What fire remained was still burning due to the stove hood blocking the water from the sprinkler,” Hill explained. The fire was extinguished with a dry chemical extinguisher, and crews checked for fire extension into the walls and cabinets.

They found no evidence the fire had spread further.

All occupants in the residence were accounted for and safe, Hill said. Property owners and managers were looking into finding a place to move the occupants until the residence was repaired.

The outcome of this incident, Hill said, can be greatly attributed to the working smoke/heat alarms and the properly working sprinkler system.

Rainbow City Fire Rescue has a smoke alarm installation program to install smoke alarms in the homes in Rainbow City at no charge to the residential property owner, he said.

“This is a program provided by anonymous donors at a state level, ‘Get Alarmed Alabama!’ and ‘The Alabama Fire College,’” he explained.

For any questions about the smoke alarm installation program contact Rainbow City Fire Rescue at (256) 442-2511.

Madison, AL – Nursing home fire kept in check by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

A small fire broke out in the kitchen at Madison Manor nursing home Tuesday night.

Madison Fire and Rescue officials say that the nursing staff and the home’s sprinkler system played a big part in keeping the fire from spreading before firefighters could arrive.

None of the 72 residents of the home were displaced or injured.

HEMSI emergency crews treated one woman who is not a resident at the scene.

Huntsville, AL – Sprinkler system helps contain fire in craft department of Walmart

Shoppers were evacuated from the Walmart on Sparkman Drive after a fire started in the craft department on Thursday morning.

Huntsville Police asked for the public’s help to identify a man wanted for questioning in connection with the Walmart fire and for a second fire that happened at Michaels on Airport Road on Thursday. They said that thanks to a tip on their post, the man was identified.

Police say Robert Charles Makowski is charged with two counts of first-degree arson. Makowski is currently being held in the Madison County Jail and bond has not been set at this time.

Captain Frank McKenzie with Huntsville Fire & Rescue (HFR) said around 9:15 a.m. firefighters were called to the store on a report that a rooftop AC unit was on fire. When officials arrived, they learned the arts and crafts department caught fire and the sprinklers went off.

People were evacuated into the store parking lot and the store was closed when firefighters arrived.

Capt. McKenzie says that the area that burned was roughly eight feet in length, six feet deep, and ten feet tall. He says there is standing water in the building that covers approximately 12,000 square feet.

Walmart was closed on Thursday.

The Sparkman Drive Walmart told WHNT News 19 they re-opened at 8 a.m. Friday.

The fire department is still investigating the fire.

Birmingham, AL – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire in hallway of apartment community; No injuries reported

A call came out at 2:30 a.m. of a fire on the 2300 block of 5th Avenue North. According to Birmingham Fire and Rescue, there was a small fire in the hallway on the 15th floor of Bankhead Towers. The sprinkler system was able to put out the fire.

The hallway sustained minor fire and water damage. Firefighters are cleaning up water. No residents were displaced and no one was injured.

The fire is under investigation.

Tanner, AL – Sprinkler systems helps put out fire after 18-wheeler crashes into building

Officials say an 18-wheeler crashed into a building Tuesday night causing a fire.

According to authorities, the crash happened around 11:40 p.m. at the Alabama Robotics Technology Park in Tanner near the Calhoun Community College campus on US 31. Fire crews said the woman driving the 18-wheeler was heading northbound and lost control of her vehicle. The truck skidded across the road and ended up running into the building causing a fire to erupt.

The driver was able to get out of the vehicle with only minor injuries.

Crews were able to put the fire out safely but the building and vehicle did receive damage.

“Crews got here on the scene shortly after we got the call. We got the fire put out on the truck and the fire in the building had a sprinkler system and it did a really good job in helping extinguish the fire,” Tracy Thornton, Battalion Chief Decatur Fire Department.

What caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle has not been released.

According to AIDT, it was the Phase 3 building in the Technology Park and the crash caused damage to a portion of the facility that houses classrooms and the lobby.

Disaster recovery services are currently on hold due to an order from officials not to enter the building.

The original architect for the building will be on site Thursday, May 23rd, to inspect the facility. A structural engineer will inspect the facility on Friday, May 24th.

The timeline for repairs is pending reports from both the architect and the structural engineer.

It will take approximately two weeks for the disaster recovery process to be completed once officials allow staff back into the structure.

FAME Classes are currently suspended until further notice. AIDT will send out a notice with a timeline for classes to resume when the information becomes available.

Normal, AL – Sprinkler system activates in overnight fire at university housing complex; No injuries reported

Note: On January 19, 2000, a fire in a dormitory at Seton Hall University tragically took the lives of three students and injured many more.  The residence hall did not have a sprinkler system.

The Foster Complex at Alabama A&M University has been reopened after a fire that started in a single room at 11:50 p.m. Monday. According to the university’s director of housing, Karla Miller, the fire activated sprinklers.

Jerome Saintjones with the university says the fire was caused by an electrical outlet, and the major factor impacting the need to temporarily reassign rooms was the triggering of the sprinkler system. He says the first and second floors of the women’s side of the structure were especially affected by this. University officials say they are using an incremental move-in approach, and the students who were reassigned after the fire have been notified of the move-in schedule. Students have been scheduled to return to the building by Friday, February 22, or have been reassigned to other residence halls. Male students have been allowed to return to the Foster Complex, and times were scheduled for all female students to pick up personal items. Female students who live on the first and second floors have been advised by the university to pack enough items for the rest of the week, during which they will remain displaced. Female students on the third, fourth and fifth floors will be able to return to the building on Wednesday. Officials say the university has and will continue to provide toiletries, blankets and hygiene items to the students that were displaced, and these are available at the 500-bed, five-story Foster Complex.

Hope Hull, AL – Manufacturing plant fire held in check by sprinkler system until crews arrive; No injuries reported