Tag Archives: Maryland

Residential, Single Family Home

Fallston, MD – Residential sprinkler system activated for fire in home; No injuries reported

Deputy State Fire Marshals are crediting a smoke alarm and a home fire sprinkler system for saving an infant’s life and reducing significant property damage at a Fallston home over the weekend.

Fallston Volunteer Fire Company and mutual-aid departments were dispatched at 10:15 a.m. on Saturday for a reported dwelling in the 2000-block of Arden Drive after the owner, who was outside at the time, heard a smoke alarm sounding. Upon arrival, the fire department discovered a fire in the kitchen with one activated fire sprinkler.

Fire investigators concluded the fire started in the kitchen, and the cause was accidental due to an unattended candle. The investigation determined that the activation of only one automatic fire sprinkler prevented the fire from spreading from the kitchen into the remainder of the home. Damage was limited to an estimated $20,000, and no injuries were reported.

State Fire Marshal Brian S. Geraci stated, “Residential fire sprinklers are proven to save lives, prevent injuries and protect property and valuables. The best home fire safety practice is combining a smoke alarm, an escape plan, and a residential fire sprinkler. Today we saw the effects of this winning combination;”.

Maryland requires a residential fire sprinkler in all new one- or two-family homes across the state. Maryland law also prohibits local governments from weakening the sprinkler requirement in their jurisdiction’s building codes.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Silver Spring, MD – Sprinkler system activated for fire at senior living facility; No injuries reported

A fire in the stairwell of a senior living building in Silver Spring, Maryland, on Saturday morning led to the temporary evacuation of the facility and displaced at least 30 residents.

There weren’t any reports of injuries.

According to officials, on Saturday morning around 11 a.m., Montgomery County Fire and Rescue personnel were called to the Willow Manor at Fairland apartment complex for reports of a fire in the stairwell.

Firefighters discovered “there was a fire in the stairwell, especially between the second and third floors … there was a sprinkler activation, pretty heavy smoke conditions throughout the building,” fire department spokesman Pete Piringer told WTOP.

“We did evacuate some people. We did assist some of the other residents either sheltering in place, or getting out,” Piringer said. “But fortunately there were no injuries and the fire was extinguished pretty quickly.”

The cause of the fire may have been an improperly discarded cigarette.

“Apparently, some folks tend to smoke in that particular stairwell. And they improperly discarded one of the cigarette butts and caused the fire,” Piringer said. “Fortunately, the sprinkler system did keep the fire in check.”

Initial estimates of the damage are around $25,000 — not including water damage, Piringer said in a tweet Saturday afternoon.

At least 30 residents of the building will be temporarily displaced due to smoke or water damage.

“The Red Cross has been called in along with our Department of Health and Human Services Emergency Management Group to assist those residents. It appears as though at least, temporarily, initially, about 30 apartments (and) 30 residents will be affected,” Piringer told WTOP.

Government Office, Government/Military

Easton, MD – Sprinkler system activated for fire at courthouse

A portion of the Talbot County Courthouse was damaged after a computer caught fire late Sunday morning. The Talbot County 911 Center received a fire alarm notification from the Talbot County Courthouse at around 11:30 a.m.

Firefighters arrived on scene to discover that a computer located in the Clerk of the Court’s office in the North Wing had caught fire, which had spread to a cabinet area. The sprinkler system was activated, helping to extinguish the flames. However, the Clerk of the Court and Register of Wills offices now have significant water and smoke damage.

Talbot County Manager Clay Stamp says disaster clean up company Royal Plus dispatched dozens of trucks and workers to assist with clean up. “At this point in time, the water has been removed and the air has been scrubbed in the main part of the courthouse. So, the court rooms should be open in the next several days,” he said.

The Talbot County Courthouse Finance Office, Circuit Court, Clerk of Court, and Register of Wills offices remained closed Monday. The South Wing of the Courthouse including the offices of Administrative Services, County Council Office, County Manager’s Office, County Attorney’s Office, and Information Technology opened as normal.

Court rooms are expected to reopen in the next several days, according to Stamp. But, the Clerk of the Court and Register of Wills offices could remain out of service for longer. “The best option is to check the website for both the register of wills and the Talbot County clerk of court. There will be information posted every day as to the status of where they are,” said Stamp. “We will do everything necessary to get services back up and running as quickly as possible.”

Stamp says right now, county officials are trying to figure out how quickly they’ll be able to open up the second floor of the courthouse. He adds they’re appreciative to the first responders and royal plus for assisting in the clean up.

Residential, Single Family Home

Frederick, MD – Sprinkler system activated for kitchen fire in home; No injuries reported

A microwave caught fire Monday morning, endangering a Frederick home, but fire department officials say sprinklers kept the blaze at bay.

The Frederick County Division of Fire and Rescue Services responded to a kitchen fire in the 1500 block of Rambling Way South at about 9 a.m., according to posts on the division’s social media. The American Red Cross came to assist three adults and three children, but the fire marshal determined the house was still livable after firefighters extinguished the flames. There were no injuries.

The home’s sprinkler system reportedly contained the fire.

Residential, Sorority / Fraternity

College Park, MD – Sprinkler system activated for fire at sorority house; No injuries reported

Members of the Tri Delta sorority evacuated their sorority house on Wednesday at about 6 p.m. after a fire broke out in the basement, according to Prince George’s County Fire Department spokesperson Michael Yourishin.

The sorority house’s sprinkler system put out the bulk of the fire, Yourishin said. Nobody in the house was injured.

“It just goes to show you the importance of having a sprinkler system in buildings like that,” Yourishin said.

Members of the sorority were evacuated for about an hour after the fire started in a dryer in the laundry room, said Tri Delta member Ellie Laffargue.

Laffargue, a junior public health science major, was in her room watching “Gilmore Girls” when the house’s fire alarms went off. At first, she thought it was one of many false alarms that occur in the house when sorority members blow dry their hair or accidentally set the alarms off, she said.

Laffargue said she darted down the stairs without shoes on after she heard the house chef scream at residents to evacuate.

Once it was safe to return back into the building, Laffargue says many of the residents noticed smoke in the hallways and in their rooms.

“Even when we were allowed back in, a lot of girls stayed outside because of how bad it smelled,” Laffargue said.

The laundry room is off-limits to residents for the next couple days due to smoke and water damage from the sprinklers, she added.

Residential, Single Family Home

Lexington Park, MD – Sprinkler system activated for residential fire; No injuries reported

On Wednesday, July 28, 2021, at 4:34 a.m., firefighters from the Bay District Volunteer Fire Department were alerted to 22278 Scott Circle in Lexington Park, for the residential fire alarm.

Dispatchers received a 911 call from the alarm company reporting a 1st floor smoke detector sounding. Less than 2 minutes later, the resident called 911 reporting the house was on fire.

The assignment was then upgraded to a structure fire, bringing firefighters from Bay District, NAS Patuxent River, and Hollywood to the scene.

Crews arrived on the scene to find a two-story residence with smoke showing.

Upon further investigation, firefighters located and extinguished a small fire in a closet.

Firefighters checked for extensions and searched the residence which yielded negative results.

The Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshal responded to the scene to continue the investigation.

Preliminary investigation revealed the residents were alerted to the fire by the smoke detectors in the home, the resident discovered the fire and called 911.

Officials want to continue the importance of citizens replacing smoke detectors yearly and making sure they work properly. The smoke detectors and residential sprinkler system were both present and activated, with the sprinkler system controlling the fire until the arrival of fire department personnel.

The owner is identified as Ronald Flowers, with the estimated loss of structure and contents valued at $11,000.00

No injuries were reported.

The American Red Cross was requested for three adults and one child.

Anyone with any information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Office of the State Fire Marshal, Southern Regional Office, at 443-550-6831.

Apartment Building, Residential

Williamsport, MD – Apartment fire extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

A five-year-old playing with a lighter caused an apartment fire in Williamsport on Wednesday afternoon.

The Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office says fire fighters were dispatched to  11339 CiCi Way just after 5:30 PM. . When they arrived, they found the fire had been contained and was extinguished by the sprinkler system. No one was hurt.

Damage is estimated at $1,000 to the structure, and $2,000 to the contents. .

Investigators says the fire started when the child playing with a lighter in a closet ignited some clothes on the floor. The heat from the fire activated the sprinkler head in child’s bedroom.

The Fire Marshal’s Office says 30 fire fighters responded to this fire call.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Rossville, MD – Fire sprinklers extinguish utility room fire at medical center; No injuries reported

A fire in a utility room at MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center was quickly extinguished, Baltimore County fire officials said.

Fire officials said firefighters were called around 3:09 p.m. for a fire on the third floor of the hospital in Rossville.

Fire officials said the hospital alarm system sounded and as firefighters were en route, the sprinkler system activated. Officials said firefighters found heavy smoke on the third floor and it took about 45 minutes to put out the fire.

“They were able to make quick extinguishment of the fire, the sprinklers were activated. They were able to contact that very quickly. They were working to shelter patients in place,” Baltimore County fire Capt. Len Stewart said.

Patients at the hospital were sheltered in place as fire crews worked on ventilating the facility. No injuries were reported, officials said.

“We had a fire in one of our inpatient units. It looks like it originated in one of our utility rooms, storage rooms. (I’m) delighted to say that the first responders did a magnificent job to put the fire out, patients were moved laterally as per our plans, no patients were hurt, no staff were injured, thank goodness. The fire’s out and we are cleaning up and looking to get back to full operations,” said Stuart Levine, president of MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center.

Levine told 11 News that the floor affected by the fire was where some COVID-19 patients were being treated. They have been moved to other areas at the hospital.

Firefighters said there was water damage on the second floor.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Easton, MD – Fire sprinklers contains fire to exterior loading dock of commercial building; No injuries reported

Authorities say several people were able to escape a late Wednesday night fire that caused a combined half a million dollars in damage to a commercial building in Easton.

The Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office said the blaze broke out shortly after 10 p.m. at Adams Publishing Group (APG) Media of Chesapeake LLC, located at 29088 Airpark Drive. 

It took 42 firefighters from the Easton Volunteer Fire Department and assisting companies approximately an hour to get the fire under control. 

The fire caused an estimated $50,000 in damage to the structure and another $450,000 in damage to its contents. There were no reported injuries. 

The building’s smoke alarm was present and activated. Additionally, its fire alarm and fire sprinkler system were present and activated. 

Deputy state fire marshals said the fire was contained to the exterior loading dock area of the commercial building. Several employees were working inside of the building at the time of the fire, who were able to evacuate the building after the fire alarm activation.

Anyone with information pertaining to the fire is asked to contact the Office of the State Fire Marshal, Upper Eastern Region Office at 410-822-7609.

Apartment Building, Residential

Lexington Park, MD – Stove fire at apartment controlled by fire sprinkler; No injuries reported

On Sunday, June 14, 2020, at approximately 5:10 a.m., police responded to the 21200 block of Lexwood Drive in Lexington Park, for the reported suicidal subject.

Police arrived on the scene to investigate the apartment and found the adult male was no longer on the scene. Police made contact with the subjects family and started a search in the area for the subject who left on foot. Three Deputies stood by at the apartment to secure the residence.

A short time later, police requested the fire department due to multiple fire/smoke alarms going off inside the apartment. Two minutes after the Bay District Volunteer Fire Department was alerted for a commercial fire alarm, firefighters from Bay District, NAS Patuxent River, and Valley Lee were alerted for the now reported structure fire.

Police investigated the apartment after the smoke alarms went off, and observed the oven was turned on and set to 500 degrees with the apartment filling with smoke. Deputies started evacuating the residence and nearby neighbors for safety, and waited for the arrival of firefighters.

13 firefighters from Bay District and NAS Patuxent River responded and arrived on the scene within minutes of dispatch to find a two story apartment building with nothing evident, firefighters found an extinguished fire on the oven that was contained by sprinkler systems, and an active fire in the oven. Firefighters removed the oven from the apartment and found personal and miscellaneous items on the over, and batteries in the oven.

No injuries were reported.

Officers located the subject a short time later in Lexington Park and placed the subject in custody where he was then transported to an area hospital with no known injuries.

The Office of the Maryland State Fire Marshal was requested to the scene.