Tag Archives: Florida

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Fort Myers, FL – Storage room fire at Crestwood Suites hotel contained by sprinkler system

A small fire in a storage room at the Crestwood Suites hotel forced dozens of people to evacuate overnight. That’s located off U.S. 41 just north of Gladiolous Drive.

Other - Retail, Retail

Tampa, FL – Fire at pawn shop controlled with help from sprinkler systems

Tampa fire rescue responded to an automatic fire alarm at 4910 East Busch Blvd, Value Pawn and Jewelry. Upon arrival firefighter saw heavy smoke coming from the roof of the single story commercial building. Firefighters entered the building with a hose line and found the automatic sprinkler system working.

The fire was under control at 4:25. The fire initially appears to have originated in the attic area of the building.  Fire Marshal’s Investigators are on scene to determine the cause and source of the fire. There were no injuries.

Apartment Building, Residential, Residential High Rise

Redington Shores, FL – Fire at high-rise condo building extinguished by single sprinkler

Firefighters responded to the 2-alarm structure fire at 8:06 a.m. Tuesday at the Anglers Cove Condominium located at 17450 Gulf Boulevard. The firefighters discovered that there was a fire in a storage room adjacent to the condominium office that had been extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system. There were no injuries, and damage was limited to smoke and water damage to the office area. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Management of Anglers Cove stated that the 48 unit building was at nearly full occupancy at the time of the fire. Upon arrival Firefighters found the building being evacuated and light smoke showing from the north side of the building on the ground floor. Gulf Boulevard was shut down for about 20 minutes, and more than 200 residents had evacuated and were waiting in adjacent parking lots for the firefighters to complete their work.

“It is important to recognize the significance of this fire being controlled by the building’s sprinkler system, one single sprinkler head prevented this from being a much greater incident and prevented injuries and greater loss of property,” said City of Seminole Fire Rescue Public Education Officer Brad Dykens in a news release.

The fire had escalated to two alarms due to the special hazards that exist when dealing with a fire in a high rise building and to ensure the safety of all the residents. During the course of the evacuation one resident in a wheelchair was assisted down the stairwell by firefighters.

Units from Seminole, Pinellas Suncoast, Madeira Beach, Pinellas Park, Clearwater, and St. Petersburg fire departments responded.

Apartment Building, Residential

Gainesville, FL – Fire at off-campus apartment building extinguished with help from sprinkler system

A fire at southwest Gainesville apartment complex that began under a television was extinguished Saturday afternoon before it had spread to other areas, reported Gainesville Fire Rescue.  Acting Chief Don Campbell credited the sprinkler system and the quick response of firefighters in keeping the fire in check.

The fire was reported about 12:10 p.m. at Campus Club Apartments at 3700 SW 40th Blvd., according to a GFR press release.   Firefighters arrived to find smoke coming from an apartment and forced entry into it. They found that two sprinkler heads had activated.  A small fire was in the entertainment center under the TV.

Firefighters finished extinguishing the fire. No one was home at the time.   “This fire would have definitely been bigger, with the potential for extension into the rest of the building,” Chief Campbell said in the release.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Sarasota, FL – Sprinkler system douses fire in Ritz-Carlton parking garage

Sarasota Fire Department personnel responded to a fire at the prestigious Ritz-Carlton Sarasota Tuesday afternoon. According to Capt. Jerry Jensen of the Sarasota Fire Department, the fire began in a vehicle parked in the hotel’s parking garage. The building’s anti-fire measures soon kicked into action, with the sprinkler system activating and dousing the conflagration. Firefighters cleared the parking garage of people and made sure the fire was fully out before issuing the all-clear. Capt. Jensen reports that the situation has now returned to normal at the Ritz.

Other Business, Place of Worship

Melbourne, FL – Sprinklers help limit damage in church arson fire

On a day when students from her congregation were to learn about slain civil rights activists Harry and Harriette V. Moore, Bishop Jacquelyn Gordon found herself awakened by a phone call informing her that an arsonist set a small fire in her church and scrawled a swastika on a nearby wall.

“To wake up to a call at 3:30 a.m. and find this, it’s mind-blowing,” said Gordon, standing near the blackened ruin of several chairs and furniture in one of the storage compartments at the New Shiloh Christian Center in Melbourne.

The blaze, which left behind $5,000 in damages, set off an alarm about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday. Sprinklers were activated, which Gordon credits with keeping the fire from spreading to the nearby electrical room.

The main sanctuary, housed in the same 125,000-square-foot building, was not affected by smoke or fire. Melbourne firefighters quickly contained the fire and discovered evidence of arson.

Melbourne police did not immediately return calls about the case and whether it would be investigated as a possible hate crime. Police report that the vandals also broke into the electrical room, burning through locks and kicking in doors.

Apartment Building, Residential

Fort Myers, FL – Sprinklers help contain apartment fire; No injuries reported

Firefighters were dispatched to the area of Bay and Dean Streets around 1 p.m. for a report of a fire on the third floor of the Dean building.  Firefighters rescued a small dog but the fire itself was contained to the apartment’s kitchen.

Sprinklers activated to help control the fire.  “It’s not fun. But the biggest thing out of the fire is that nobody was hurt,” said Perry Hauser the City Tavern General Manager. Everybody knows, it’s out of everybody’s hands.”

Other - Retail, Retail

Lee County, FL – Sprinklers douse arson fire at barber shop

Confirmation from the state fire marshal that the barber shop in the Metropolis Shopping Center was intentionally set. Fire crews were called to the business plaza Sunday evening about 10:30 with what turned out to be several fires inside the shop. First responders found the back door open and charred equipment inside. The sprinkler system doused the fire and left water damage behind.

“We’ll get it back rolling again. It could have been a lot worse, it’s just a stepping stone and I’ll get it back.” said owner Collette Clark.
The property manager tells us Clark is going to be able to move next door while the shop is repaired so she should be up and running in the couple of days.
Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Sarasota, FL – Fire at Lido Beach Holiday Inn controlled with help from sprinkler system

Daniel Sperry was walking along Lido Beach Tuesday morning when he heard a “bang” and turned around to see smoke billowing from a sixth floor room at the Holiday Inn on Ben Franklin Drive.  Sarasota County fire officials said they couldn’t determine the cause of the fire – the state fire marshall will investigate – but no injuries were reported.

Sarsota County Fire Dept. Capt. Jerry Jensen said the department had the fire out in nine minutes.  “The initial stop was done by the sprinkler system within the building itself. Our crews were in there quickly and finished off the work the sprinkler system did start. So we had the fire out rather quickly.”

Power was initially out on the sixth floor but was later restored. Three rooms were vacated on the sixth floor. The Fire Department reported minor smoke damage to the hallway.

A hotel employee said there was a meeting for the International Association of Police Chiefs on the seventh floor of the building above the reported explosion. Members of the association were seen exiting the hotel with other residents during the initial evacuation.

College/University (on campus), School / University

Miami, FL – Sprinkler system extinguishes overnight fire at art school

An overnight electrical fire at the New World School of the Arts in downtown Miami sent firefighters to the campus and parts of a class project to the trash. Firefighters responded to the small fire in a gallery at the school around 1 a.m. Tuesday, said Miami Fire Rescue Capt. Ignatius Carroll. “The sprinkler system actually put the fire out,” Carroll said. 

He added that “crews were out there for a little bit” to try to remove all the water from the sprinklers from the building and to get the smoke to clear out. “The water doesn’t stop once the fire is out,” Carroll said.  Firefighters also changed the sprinklers and reset the alarm system, he added.  No one was injured in the fire. Classes were not affected by the fire. “We’re fully operational,” Hodgson said. “There are no classes in that room.”