Tag Archives: Ontario

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Toronto, ON – Hotel sprinkler system stops storage room fire; No injuries

Hotel guests were out on the street after a fire at the Fairmont Royal York hotel late on Sunday night.

A couch in a third-floor storage room caught fire around 11:45 p.m. Luckily, the heat and smoke activated the sprinkler system, and the fire was quickly extinguished.

“Damage was minimal,” Toronto fire district chief Mike Swift said.

One hotel guest got a little wet while making his escape: “The water was running out of the roof. We walked through the water to get out of there.”

Not all guests had to evacuate the building. Others stayed warm in the lobby. Everyone has been allowed back in and no injuries have been reported.

It’s not yet clear how the fire started. Only the couch was damaged.

Other Business, Recycling / Waste Facility

Brantford, ON, Canada – Fire at rubber tire recycling business held in check by sprinkler system

An hour later, firefighters were called to tire recycler Ideal Rubber for a fire in a tire shredder. Fire prevention officer Scott Hardwick said it was fortunate the plant’s sprinkler system, a requirement for such heat-intensive processes, kicked in to help keep the fire from getting out of control. Hardwick said the fire crews were able to respond quickly and suppress the fire within eight minutes of being called. “These can be very aggressive fires,” Hardwick said. None of the Ideal Rubber staff or the firefighters was injured by the fire.

Other Business

Caledon, ON, Canada – Fire in dust collection system controlled with help from sprinklers

Caledon firefighters are working to put out a fire this morning (Jan. 18) at a commercial property fire at Highway 50 and Healey Rd. Firefighters found light smoke conditions inside the building and a working fire in the ‎dust collection system. No injuries were reported and the internal sprinkler system has been activated. Crews are attempting to bring the fire under control. Bolton, Palgrave, Caledon East and Caledon Village Fire Stations, OPP and Peel EMS are currently on scene‎.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Thunder Bay, ON, Canada – Fire at Bombardier plant controlled by sprinkler system; No injuries

Thunder Bay’s Bombardier plant was forced to evacuate its employees Wednesday afternoon, after a fire broke out inside the facility. The call came in at around 3 p.m.. Thunder Bay fire crews rushed to the plant on Montreal Street, after reports of a structural fire. As it turns out the fire was contained to a piece of equipment. The plant’s sprinkler system was activated and Bombardier staff apparently had the fire out before fire crews arrived.

Hundreds of employees were evacuated as a precautionary measure. There’s no word on how much damage was done to the equipment in the area where the fire started.

Other - Retail, Retail

London, ON, Canada – Official thanking sprinkler system following Goodwill Donation Centre blaze

A Goodwill Industries official is praising the sprinkler system after a fire broke out Wednesday morning at the Outlet & Donation Centre on White Oak Rd.

President and CEO of Goodwill Industries Michelle Quintyn tells AM980 when fire crews were called.

“At about 11 o’clock this morning, we had a small fire start in the back end of the building. Alarm went off, the one area of the sprinkler system went off, we evacuated the building, everyone got out safely,” she said. “We have had quite a bit of activity here today making sure that the fire is out, it’s a building full of textiles and all kinds of recyclable materials.”

A damage estimate and cause of the blaze could not be determined by the Fire Inspector on duty

Quintyn did, however, mention that the building was undergoing roof work

“The area that the fire occurred is more a warehousing area, it is not a production area. In that vicinity there was some roof work going on,” she said. “A sprinkler system is a good thing to have in a big building like this.”

Fire crews could also be seen inspecting tar machines near where the fire broke out.

Quintyn added that there were well over 200 people in the building at the time, many of them employees and some customers. No injuries have been reported.

 

 

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Sault Ste. Marie, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system activates in overnight fire at manufacturing plant

Ontario Fire Marshal is investigating a blaze at Arauco North America. Sault Ste. Marie Fire Services was called to the Base Line site, formerly Flakeboard, at about 11:50 p.m. on Sunday.

A sprinkler system was activated. Arauco workers were fighting a fire in a press machine and dust collection system, said platoon chief Stan Martynuck. Firefighters took over.

Spot fires followed in the early morning Monday. The fire was under control by 8 a.m., said Martynuck. The fire department was on scene until 5 p.m.

One firefighter received minor injuries. He was not taken to Sault Area Hospital.

Cause of the blaze is under investigation by fire prevention officer Carlo Provenzano and OFM investigators. Heavy damage prompted OFM participation, said Martynuck.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Guelph, ON, Canada – Fire at Staybridge Suites hotel suppressed by sprinkler system

Guelph firefighters say well trained staff and working sprinklers saved a fire from getting out of control in a Guelph hotel room.

Officials say the fire was sparked by materials left near a hot plate at the Staybridge Suites off Highway Six. A father was staying in the first floor room with his children. They returned to the room on Saturday to find it full of smoke.

“The sprinkler system actually did what it was supposed to. It was fully functioning and it actually saved that room and probably saved a huge part of that building as a result of that,” said Tony Sabatini, chief fire prevention officer with the city of Guelph.

Part of the hotel needed to be evacuated.  Damage is estimated at around $35,000.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Barrie, ON, Canada – Fire contained to equipment room by sprinkler system

The Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office has been contacted, following a late night fire at Global Electric Electronic Processing in Barrie. Barrie fire crews were called to John Street on Saturday night, around 10 p.m. to contend with smoke and flames. Officials say a sprinkler system contained the fire to an equipment room until firefighters arrived and extinguished the flames.

Staff evacuated the building quickly and no injuries are reported. The OFM will sift through the debris on Monday to determine a cause and damage estimate. A private security firm has been hired to secure the property during the investigation. This is the fourth time in the last 12 months that Barrie fire crews have been called to Geep.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Woodstock, ON, Canada – Fire in laser cutter at machining business contained with help from sprinklers

The Woodstock Fire Department said they responded to a structure fire at Harvan Engineering Ltd. Thursday at around 5 p.m.  When they arrived, fire crews found that staff had been evacuated and the sprinkler systems had been activated, allowing firefighters to extinguish the fire.

The cause of the fire was determined to be the result of a spark from the cutting process melting an oxygen supply line, igniting the oxygen supply and spreading to the machine housing. “This is an excellent example of a building’s life-safety systems minimizing the spread of a fire,” said Woodstock fire’s Deputy Fire Chief Jason Whiteley. “A working and properly maintained sprinkler system prevented the fire from leaving the piece of equipment and potentially destroying the facility.”

The Woodstock Fire Department said they would like to remind everyone that all fire and life-safety equipment should be checked monthly and have annual maintenance performed to ensure it will operate when needed.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Toronto, ON, Canada – Arson fire at cabinet manufacturing business extinguished by sprinkler system

Police are investigating a case of arson in North York after officers say a Molotov cocktail was thrown through the window of a cabinet manufacturing business Saturday night.

Toronto Fire Services got a call to respond to Modern Custom Cabinets on Chesswood Dr., near Finch Ave. W. and Dufferin St., at about 10:15 p.m. when the sprinkler system was activated at the business.  According to Toronto Fire, a small fire in the front office had been extinguished by the sprinkler system when firefighters arrived on scene.

Firefighters also found evidence of a Molotov cocktail at the site, but reported minor damage to the building.  The store appears to have been closed at the time of the fire, as no one was reported to be inside the building and no one was injured, police confirmed.