Tag Archives: British Columbia

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.

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Smithers, BC, Canada – Arson fire at sawmill controlled by sprinkler system

A 49-year-old man is reportedly in police custody, in connection with two fires at the Pacific Inland Resources sawmill in Smithers.  RCMP and the Smithers Fire Department were called to the mill shortly after 10pm last night.

Fire chief Keith Stecko says mill employees activated fire supression systems quickly. “PIR has a sprinkler system in its building so the system quickly detected the fire and was able to control it; when we arrived we put out some spot fires, but the sprinklers largely did the work,” he said.

Stecko says it appears some sort of accelerant was used — and there was considerable damage.  “We’re estimating between $50,000 to perhaps $100,000; we are currently investigating what was used to start the fire, so we’re not sure at this point what it was,” he said.

Residential, Townhouse / Condominium

Kelowna, BC, Canada – Sprinklers help knock down flames in early morning townhouse fire

An early morning structure fire in Kelowna has caused damage to at least one suite in a three storey townhouse.

The Kelowna Fire Department received a call about the fire around 6:28 a.m. on Friday. When crews arrived on scene they spotted a fire on the roof of a townhouse on Ambrosi Road. Firefighters managed to knock the fire down quickly and the building sprinkler system helped to extinguish the flames.

There were no reported injuries as a result of the fire but one suite was affected and an adjoining suite suffered water damage as well. Emergency Support Services is now assisting the residents with any support services they may require. The cause of the fire has not been released.

Other Business, Recycling / Waste Facility

Campbell River, BC, Canada – Firefighters connect to sprinkler system to help control fire at recycling center

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Wednesday’s fire in a Maple Street building containing cardboard recycling appears to have been deliberately set.

“When crews arrived on the scene, they found a pile of cardboard and paper that measured approximately eight metres wide by three metres tall fully engulfed in flames. The fire was contained inside the metal clad building, and crews decided the most effective method to douse the fire was to use the waterway at the tip of the ladder fire truck,” said deputy fire chief Vrabel says.

Firefighters were called out about 6:25 p.m. After a few mintures, they changed from dousing the fire with handheld hoses to a nozzle attached to the hose at the end of the ladder on the aerial ladder truck. The nozzle was then directed into the interior of the building and brought the fire under control.

“We initiated a defensive attack. We were concerned about the structural stability of the metal beams that were supporting the roof so we weren’t committing any members inside,” Vrabel said. “Police did have some persons of interest in their custody while we were carrying out our fire operations.”

Vrabel said that three youth “of interest” had been located by the RCMP.

“It definitely appears to be intentionally set by one or more persons,” Vrabel said.

The building is privately owned and is leased out to Sun Coast Waste Management.

On scene were 21 firefighters with four pieces of apparatus committed to the incident. The fire department left the scene after 9:30 p.m.

The fire was still smouldering as of this afternoon but firefighters managed to connect to a sprinkler system in the building and that was directed onto the pile to control it.

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Merritt, BC, Canada – Sprinklers help contain sawmill fire; Operations resume same day

Merritt Fire Rescue responded to a fire at the Tolko sawmill around 1:30 Saturday afternoon.  Fire Chief Dave Tompkinson says a hydraulic oil tank was on fire.

“Prior to firefighters arriving, the sprinkler system had activated. The sawmill employees had actioned the fire with extinguishers and a hose line,” says Tompkinson. The fire was inside the the plant, and spread to some machinery above.

Tomkinson says, as the fire department was leaving, the sawmill was already getting back up and running. The cause of the fire is unknown.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Merritt, BC, Canada – Suspicious fire at elementary school extinguished by sprinkler system

A small fire that sparked in an office at Merritt Secondary School was quickly extinguished by the sprinkler system before the fire department arrived. The fire started just before 10 a.m. in a room that is adjacent to the main office on the ground floor. It was contained to that particular room, Merritt Fire Rescue Department Fire Chief Dave Tomkinson told the Herald.

Tomkinson said the fire was deemed suspicious and RCMP are investigating. The fire department cannot release any information pertaining to what burned, or the fire’s area of origin.

“There was a fair amount of water damage [to the room],” Tomkinson said. School District 58 superintendent Steve McNiven said the office where the fire sparked is a meeting room in the counselling area of the school.

McNiven said he’s not sure how the fire was discovered, and doesn’t know if anyone was using it at the time of the fire. The fire triggered the alarm and the school was evacuated. Students were allowed back in the building at about 1 p.m.

About 16 firefighters responded to the fire. Tomkinsoin said firefighters assisted the school board staff in salvaging efforts and cleaning up.

McNiven said he was pleased with how students and staff responded to the fire, noting that everyone evacuated the school appropriately and handled themselves well.

No injuries were reported in this incident.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Burnaby, BC, Canada – Sprinkler system helps minimize fire damage at Serta mattress factory

A long-time Burnaby warehouse suffered extensive smoke and water damage last week after a small fire broke out in the building. It was an automatic fire alarm ringing from inside the Serta mattress factory on Winston Street that alerted firefighters of an incident shortly before 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 2, assistant Fire Chief Bryan Kirk told the NOW.

When firefighters arrived, there were two employees standing outside, but neither could say why the alarm was going off. “(The firefighters) went inside, and they realized there was something going on, the whole place was full of smoke, so they upgraded it to a second alarm,” Kirk said. The origin of the fire appeared to be a gluing table inside the warehouse, he added. “Between the mattress, the glue and this wooden table, (there was) enough combustibles – that started the fire,” Kirk said.

There wasn’t significant fire damage inside the warehouse, thanks to the sprinkler system. Because of the size of the facility, the fire was upgraded to a two-alarm blaze that required about 28 firefighters. Fire crews were on scene until 10 p.m. trying to clear out the smoke. “The whole place was full of smoke, and it makes it that much more difficult to ventilate that much smoke,” he said. “(Firefighters) were there for a good six hours or so, just because it was work intensive getting rid of all the smoke, not so much fighting a fire.” The NOW contacted the manager at the warehouse for more details on the extent of the damage, but calls haven’t been returned yet

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Port Moody, BC – Sprinkler system contains fire at sawmill; No injuries

No one was injured following an explosion and fire at a Port Moody sawmill early Tuesday morning.

Firefighters received a call at 2:30 a.m. that there was a fire at the Flavelle Sawmill. It turns out that a nitrogen tank that was part of a hydraulic system had exploded, due to a nearby fire.

When crews arrived, there was a small fire at the mill, but the sprinkler system had activated and contained the fire.

Investigators are still trying to determine the cause.

The explosion did blow a “significant hole” in the sawmill wall, according to the PMFD.

Workers were on break at the time so there was no one in the area.

Apartment Building, Residential

Victoria, BC, Canada – Apartment cooking fire doused by sprinkler system

A Victoria apartment suite is heavily water damaged after a sprinkler system doused a stove-top oil fire and then drowned the rest of the room.  Alarm bells sounded at 9:30 Sunday evening at 710 Queens Avenue when an oil fire ignited, according to Victoria Fire Battalion Chief Dave Bicknell.   The lone occupant of the suite had been cooking french fries in oil on the stovetop at the time of the fire.  

“The fire was likely caused by overheating of the oil,” Bicknell said, in his report.  The sprinkler system extinguished the kitchen fire but continued to flow until fire crews were able to shut it down.  “There was some damage to the suite caused by smoke and heat, however the fire itself had been contained to the pot,” Bicknell said. The building on the corner of Douglas Street is run by the Victoria Cool Aid Society

Apartment Building, Residential

Victoria, BC, Canada – Late night apartment fire extinguished by single sprinkler

The fire, believed to have been caused by oil in a pan on a stove, broke out at 10:45 p.m. in a suite at Quadra Street and Caledonia Avenue. The fire was extinguished by a single sprinkler near the stove. However, four floors directly below were flooded, causing damage, said acting Battalion Chief Lance Mitchell of Victoria Fire. The resident of the suite received second-degree burns to one of his hands while trying to extinguish the blaze. He was taken to hospital by B.C. Ambulance. Several displaced residents will be given assistance with housing through the Victoria Emergency Management Agency, the fire department said. The department’s fire inspector reminds people cooking with oil not to leave the pot or pan unattended and to have a lid nearby in case of fire.