Tag Archives: Early AM (5am-7am)

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

High Point, NC – Sprinkler system activated for fire at factory; No injuries reported

A fire damaged part of the Akzo Nobel factory in the southern part of the city Tuesday morning and forced a temporary evacuation of the complex, which produces specialized paints and coatings.

The fire started around 6:30 a.m. at the factory in the 1400 block of Progress Avenue.

Employees in the building where the fire was immediately evacuated, and the building remains shut down until further notice, Akzo Nobel said in a statement to The High Point Enterprise.

Firefighters saw flames coming from part of one building when they arrived, Deputy Fire Chief Brian Evans of the High Point Fire Department said. The fire started in a vat in a production area. A sprinkler system activated and kept the fire from spreading further, he said.

Firefighters brought the blaze under control in eight minutes, and no one was injured.

Three buildings were initially evacuated while firefighters brought the blaze under control, Evans said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation but it is being ruled an accident, he said.

A dollar estimate of the damage wasn’t available Tuesday.

Fifteen units and 33 firefighters went to the fire scene.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Oshkosh, WI – Sprinkler system controls fire at restaurant; No injuries reported

Oshkosh firefighters said a fire at a restaurant was caused by “the spontaneous combustion of deep-fried tempura flakes.”

On Monday at 5:49 a.m., the Oshkosh Fire Department responded to a water flow alarm at Sakura Japanese Steakhouse, located at 330 North Koeller Street in Oshkosh.

Engine 16 and Ladder 15 responded initially and upgraded the alarm to a structure fire response after seeing smoke coming from the building. The fire activated the fire sprinkler system which controlled the fire until it could be fully extinguished.

“The fire was caused by the spontaneous combustion of deep-fried tempura flakes,” the Oshkosh Fire Department said in a news release.

No injuries were reported.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Chaska, MN – Sprinkler system activated for fire at high school; No injuries reported

A small fire started on a ceiling light fixture at Chaska High School the early morning of Wednesday, March 29, while the district was on spring break.

The sprinklers triggered a water flow alarm and the alarm company called the Chaska Fire Department.

“Thanks to the sprinkler system and the fast response of the fire department the fire was put out quickly,” a Facebook post from Eastern Carver County Schools stated. “We are grateful for their support. No one was harmed but staff are working to assess damage.”

Most of the damage from the incident was from the water, according to Celi Haga, the district’s director of communications and community engagement.

Haga said that the school would “be ready to welcome back students and staff on Monday.”

Chaska’s Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Gravalin said that the fire was “nothing major because of the sprinklers. It was controlled. But without the sprinklers he said it “could have been catastrophic, so definitely very lucky to have the sprinkler system.”

Gravalin said that the insurance company is investigating the other lights in the building. “The message from us was to make sure that they have somebody take a look at it,” he added.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

East Providence, RI – Sprinkler system activated for fire in commercial building; No injuries reported

A two-alarm fire broke out at a commercial building in East Providence on Sunday morning, city fire officials said.

Around 6:43 a.m., East Providence fire officials were alerted of a fire at 830 Waterman Ave. Upon arrival, firefighters found the fire coming from the loading dock and that the fire sprinkler system was activated.

Fire officials said they quickly struck a second alarm and made an aggressive attack at the flames inside the building.

No one was inside the building at the time of the fire, according to authorities. No injuries were reported.

Fire officials said the cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The East Providence fire department received mutual aid from Seekonk, Massachusetts. Providence, Pawtucket and Barrington covered the fire stations.

Apartment Building, Residential

Gardiner, ME – Sprinkler system activated for fire in apartment building; No injuries reported

A small fire that started in a Maine Avenue apartment Monday shortly before 5 a.m. was put out by the building’s sprinkler system.

Gardiner Fire Chief Rick Sieberg said the tenant in the third-floor apartment apparently knocked into a stove, turning on a burner that ignited some nearby paper products and caused a small fire up the wall, which activated the sprinkler head.

The Maine Office of State Fire Marshal is investigating the fire.

“Having that sprinkler system is like having the fire department in your apartment 24/7,” Sieberg said. “The amount of property and lives that can be saved by that sprinkler system is enormous.”

Sieberg said the Gardiner firefighters who responded turned off the sprinkler.

This is the third time in the last decade the sprinkler system has extinguished a fire in that building, which is located several hundred feet from the site of a fire in July 2015 that destroyed 235 Water St. and damaged buildings on either side of it.

Sieberg said damage to the unit was minor, and no other unit was affected. No one was hurt.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

New Philadelphia, OH – Sprinkler system activated for kitchen fire at Burger King; No injuries reported

A kitchen fire has temporarily closed the Burger King at 110 Blue Bell Dr. NW.

Firefighters from multiple municipalities responded at 5:26 a.m. The fire was accidental, according to Capt. Jim Shultz of the New Philadelphia Fire Department.

“We can’t rule out electrical or grease. Initially, an employee turned on the fryers and the hood vent, went back to get food from the freezers and upon returning saw fire coming out from behind the fryer. Their extinguishing system tripped, and the sprinkler system then went off and held the fire in check until our guys could put it out. It had extended up into the ceiling.”

Employees from Burger King could be seen loading up a rental vehicle with food to be transferred to other locations.

A woman, who identified herself as the store manager but would not give her name, said employee were being moved to other nearby Burger King locations, estimating this location could be shut down for months.

A corporate representative from Burger King on scene declined to comment on the situation.

Firefighters from New Philadelphia, Dover, Uhrichsville and medics from Smith Ambulance all responded.

No injuries were reported.

Apartment Building, Residential, Townhouse / Condominium

Somerville, MA – Sprinkler systems activated for two separate fires

Sprinkler systems in two Somerville buildings prevented serious fires this past week during the early morning hours while occupants were asleep, accoding to Somerville Fire Department’s Chief Engineer Charles Breen Jr.

On Friday, Oct. 28t at 4:25 a.m. the Somerville Fire Department was notified of a fire alarm activation via a building alarm system which was directly connected to the city fire alarm box system.

Firefighters were dispatched to 32 Kent Street, a 40 unit, four story wood frame apartment building. Firefighters encountered smoke on the fourth floor and forced entry into a 4th floor apartment. They found a man on the floor inside and removed him to safety. He was taken to the hospital.

Sprinklers confined the fire to one room in the apartment and firefighters completed extinguishment. Due to water damage, the building was evacuated and all occupants were temporarily displaced. The cause of the fire was determined to be accidental due to smoking.

On Sunday, Oct. 30, the department was notified of a fire alarm activation from an alarm monitoring company at 4:09 a.m.

Firefighters were dispatched to an address on Lake Street and arrived to find a sprinkler head operating in a ground level garage in a row of three story town houses.

One sprinkler head confined the fire to a very limited area in the garage and, after verifying that the fire was out, crews were able to clear the scene in 15 minutes.

The cause of the fire was determined to be an unattended candle that had ignited nearby combustible items.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Wilbraham, MA – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire at nursing home; No injuries reported

Emergency crews were called to a fire at a Wilbraham nursing home Monday morning.

Wilbraham Fire Chief Michael Andrews said that a 911 calls came in around 6:10 a.m. Monday for a kitchen fire at Vantage Nursing Home on Maple Street.

Firefighters arrived four minutes later and found heavy smoke coming from the kitchen area and that the facility’s sprinkler system activated and extinguished the fire.

Residents of the nursing home were told to shelter-in-place while crews worked to ventilate the smoke from that area of the building.

Mutual aid from Ludlow, Palmer, Hampden, and Westover was called in to assist.

Andrews noted that the cause of the fire remains under investigation, but it is not considered suspicious.

No injuries were reported.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Summerville, SC – Sprinkler system activated for kitchen fire at restaurant; No injuries reported

Summerville Fire officials say a local restaurant sustained extensive heat and water damage Tuesday morning after a fire broke out in the kitchen.

No injuries were reported.

Crews were dispatched to Mad Fish restaurant at 1580 Trolley Rd. around 5:30 a.m. for reports of smoke in the area.

Upon arrival, smoke was observed coming from the restaurant and crews upgraded the call to a structure fire.

Firefighters forced entry into the building and found fire in the kitchen had activated the sprinkler system.

In addition to damage to Mad Fish, smoke spread to adjoining businesses.

Fire crews are expected to be on scene Tuesday morning with one lane of Trolley Road closed.

The cause will be investigated, fire officials said.

Mad Fish is located in the Ridgeway Plaza.

Office Building, Other Business

San Diego, CA – Sprinkler system extinguished early morning laboratory fire; No injuries reported

A fire early Wednesday in a second-floor laboratory in a Qualcomm building in Sorrento Valley was put out by sprinklers before firefighters arrived, San Diego Fire-Rescue officials said.

The fire was reported around 6:40 a.m. in a four-story building on McKellar Court off Pacific Center Boulevard called the Qualcomm Pacific Center Campus. When crews arrived, they didn’t see any smoke or fire showing from the outside the building but when they got inside, they found a fire that had been extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system.

After searching the building to check for any spread of the fire, crews worked to ensure the fire didn’t reignite. Just under 50 firefighters from San Diego and Chula Vista had responded to the fire.

No injuries were reported. No damage estimate was immediately available. A cause of the fire also wasn’t reported.

Total Saves: 5,398*

Reporting on lives and property saved by fire sprinklers

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