Tag Archives: Louisiana

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Lafayette, LA – No injuries at senior apartment building as sprinkler system limits fire to one unit

Dozens of elderly residents were displaced Tuesday night after a fire at the historic Evangeline Hotel in downtown Lafayette. The building is located at the intersection of Jefferson and Vine St.

Lafayette fire officials say it could be a couple of days, maybe even weeks, before residents can return back to the complex, but the 69 residents who were evacuated are now safe and sound at a local hotel.

The fire started in the kitchen of a room on the 4th floor of the six story building around 8:30 p.m. Fire officials say the tenant was cooking when she fell asleep.

“Fortunately, the apartments had a sprinkler system and it activated pretty quickly and extinguished the fire, so the fire was contained to the small area,” said Lafayette Fire Investigator, Alton Trahan, but it’s the amount of water that the sprinkler system produced that caused the evacuation of residents.

“The water damage from the sprinkler system actually went from the 4th floor all the way down to the 1st floor, so you had a lot of flooding in all the units underneath,” said Trahan.

Electrical hazard concerns had prompted the owners to cut power to the building and bring in engineers to inspect the damage.

“A lot of components within that facility need to be examined and once it’s cleared they’ll be able to put the power back on,” said Trahan.

Meanwhile, the displaced residents, initially housed in two hotels, have since been reunited at one local hotel.

“Most of them came last night, a few of them early this morning,” said Shawn Johnson, General Manager of the Ramada Inn. “I think we’re accommodating about 41 people.”

Johnson says they had to do a little moving around, but they were able to squeeze everyone in.

“They all have their own room,” said Johnson. “We’ve included all their meals: breakfast, lunch, and dinner all together, so I’m very grateful and thankful we’re able to accommodate them. Most of them came in with just what they had on.”

News 10 also spoke with the on-site manager of the Evangeline Apartments and she said the property is controlled by the Lafayette Neighborhoods’ Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors, who wished not to comment at this time citing that their first priority is the residents well-being.

Fortunately, no one was injured.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential High Rise

Lafayette, LA – Sprinkler system activates in high-rise senior apartment building fire; No injuries reported

The fire originated in an apartment on the fourth floor of Evangeline Elderly Apartments. It was caused by an occupant who left a pot of grease unattended on the stove top. The grease ignited and caught the cabinets in the kitchen on fire. The sprinkler system in the apartment activated and quickly extinguished the fire. The kitchen sustained minimal fire damage. However, heavy water damage was observed seeping through light fixtures on the first floor.

Concerned of electrical hazards from the water, 69 tenants were evacuated and later transported to two local hotels. The management company arranged for the transportation and lodging.

Acadian Ambulance, Lafayette Police, and American Red Cross assisted fire personnel with the care of the elderly tenants. No one sustained any injuries.

The cause of the fire was ruled an accident.

ORIGINAL STORY:A small fire that broke out Tuesday evening at Evangeline Elderly Apartments in Lafayette has inadvertently caused big problems for more than 60 of its residents.

According to information from the Lafayette Fire Department, a small fire broke out in a fourth-floor apartment’s kitchen Tuesday, triggering the building’s sprinkler system. The fire was extinguished before firefighters arrived at the scene; however, the water from the sprinkler system caused another issue.

As a result of the water from the sprinkler system, firefighters worked to evacuate about 65 of the complex’s residents.

“The fourth floor on down has sustained some extent of water damage,” Lafayette Fire Department spokesman Alton Trahan said in an email. “Water is seeping through some of the electrical fixtures on each floor.”

Apartment Building, Residential

Lafayette, LA – Trash compactor fire at apartment complex suppressed by sprinkler system

(Blog Note: Smoke does not cause a sprinkler to activate, but rather only the substantial heat from a fire).
A Friday afternoon fire at a downtown Lafayette apartment complex likely was caused by an improperly trashed lit cigarette, according to the Lafayette Fire Department.

Firefighters arrived at Uptown Lofts at 519 S. Pierce St. around 4 p.m. to find smoke coming from an apartment’s trash compactor, spokesman Alton Trahan said. The smoke caused the room’s sprinkler to activate, suppressing the fire before firefighters could remove the metal trash bin with burning materials inside, Trahan said.

The building did not sustain fire damage, but occupants were evacuated while firefighters investigated the smoke’s origin. Investigators ruled the fire an accident

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Lafayette, LA – Electrical fire at bingo hall extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries

Lafayette firefighters responded to a sprinkler alarm activation at the Metro Bingo Hall on NE Evangeline Throughway around 7:28 a.m. Saturday. When firefighters arrived, the alarm to the sprinkler was sounding and Firefighters made entry into the building and discovered smoke inside and water flowing from a sprinkler head.

Authorities say the sprinkler extinguished the fire, however, the interior of the building sustained heavy smoke damage. Fire investigators determined that the fire originated under a table/desk in the bingo area of the building where there was numerous electrical equipment including computers under a desk.

The building has been closed since Thursday night. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Apartment Building, Residential

Shreveport, LA – Sprinkler system activates in apartment fire caused by cigarette dropped down trash chute

Residents of Fairmont Towers in the 700 block of Cotton Street were able to return to their apartments after smoke forced them from the building early Sunday morning.  The fire was reported at approximately 8:21 Sunday morning after the sprinkler system in the apartment building went off.

Firefighters arrived on the scene to find smoke through the building.  Occupants of the downtown Shreveport apartment building were evacuated shortly after firefighters arrived.

One person was treated on the scene from smoke inhalation.  Firefighters believe the cause of the fire to be a cigarette dropped down the trash chute within the building. This has yet to be confirmed by investigators.

Food Processing, Manufacturing

Baton Rouge, LA – Sprinkler system keeps fire from spreading at grocery distribution center

Firefighters were called out to a small fire caused by a piece of equipment inside a large distribution center early Monday morning.

The St. George Fire Department reported it happened at Associated Grocers just before 1:30 a.m.

Eldon Ledoux with SGFD said firefighters found a floor-sweeping machine on fire inside and there was heavy smoke.

He added the workers had made it out safely and no one was injured.

Officials said the sprinkler system helped to keep the fire from spreading and firemen finished putting it out.

According to Ledoux, there was only minor damage. Firefighters also ventilated the smoke from the building.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Baton Rouge, LA – Fire at senior assisted living center contained to point of origin by sprinkler system

Many residents at a senior living center in Baton Rouge were forced to evacuate after a dryer unit caught fire before 7 p.m. Monday.  St. George Fire officials said none of the 93 residents at the Sunrise Assisted Living Center on Siegen Lane were hurt.  One staff member suffered from smoke inhalation and was treated on site by EMS. 

“The fire began and was limited to the laundry area,” said Eldon Ledoux, spokesman for the St. George Fire Department.  The call came in around 6:49 p.m., and crews arrived on scene within 5 minutes. The fire was under control in less than half an hour, leaving little damage. 

“The sprinkler system really knocked the fire down and stopped it from spreading beyond that point of origin. This is where sprinkler systems save lives,” said Ledoux.  Many seniors were evacuated from the building. Others stayed inside behind fire doors with fire crew supervision. 

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

New Orleans, LA – Sprinklers put out fire at French Quarter restaurant

The New Orleans Fire Department responded to a one-alarm fire Monday (July 20) at the Gazebo Café in the French Quarter. Firefighter Michael Williams said the police department called the fire department around 7 p.m. to report smoke coming from the Decatur Street restaurant. It was closed at the time, he said, and firefighters had to force entry into the building.

They had the scene under control in 10 minutes, he said. Williams said the fire appears to have been caused by a commercial refrigerator that failed. The fire was contained to the Gazebo Cafe, he said, and the restaurant’s sprinkler system put the fire out.

The New Orleans Fire Department responded to a one-alarm fire Monday (July 20) at the Gazebo Cafe in the French Quarter. The restaurant sustained mostly smoke damage, he said. In total, Williams said eight units and 22 firefighters responded. No injuries were reported.

Apartment Building, Residential, Residential High Rise

Shreveport, LA – High-rise apartment blaze knocked down by sprinkler system

Firefighters were called to the high-rise Fairmont Apartments building in downtown Shreveport just before 7:00 Monday evening. Fire officials say the fire appeared to have started in the kitchen of a third floor apartment. Fortunately, the sprinkler system had mostly knocked out the fire before firefighters arrived.

“The sprinkler system did what it was supposed to do, save the owners of the building money, reduce the damage and minimize injuries to the occupants. So, the sprinkler system was effective in doing its job,” says Shreveport Fire Chief Fred Sanders. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Shreveport, LA – Fire on sixth-floor of Holiday Inn contained to one room by sprinkler system

Heavy smoked filled a sixth-floor room at the Holiday Inn Shreveport on Monday afternoon, activating the sprinkler system and triggering an alarm that resulted in at least 20 fire units being dispatched to the hotel (blog note: fire sprinklers are only activated by heat, not smoke).

The exact cause of the smoke and fire was unknown late Monday as fire investigators worked the scene. No injuries were reported. The room is unusable, but most of the building was not damaged.

“The fire was contained, basically, to one room on the sixth floor and there were other rooms that sustained smoke damage,” said Fred Sanders, assistant to the fire chief. The sprinklers immediately activating helped minimize damage to the room, Sanders said. Firefighters also doused the room as a safety precaution.

Ed Socha, Holiday Inn Shreveport general manager, said employees and about 40 guests staying at the hotel were evacuated. As a standard procedure, some employees were checked out by EMS at the scene.

The room at the center of the smoky scene was rented, but the guest wasn’t there when the fire started, Socha said. Socha said he didn’t see flames. “Just because of the smoke damage, it’s (the room) going to have to be completely redone,” he said. The hotel was to undergo an annual inspection today but it will be postponed, Socha said.