Tag Archives: Virginia

Apartment Building, Residential

Williamsburg, VA – Apartment kitchen fire put out by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Two residents of an apartment complex in Williamsburg had to relocate out of their unit after a kitchen fire broke out Saturday night.

The City of Williamsburg Fire Department, James City County Fire Department and York County Fire and Life Safety were all called on Saturday, Feb. 6 around 8:45 p.m to an apartment fire that occurred in the 1400 block of Middle Street. 

There were 22 firefighters initially called for the incident.

When the first crew arrived on the scene at 8:49 p.m., they said they spotted smoke coming from the second-floor hallway in one of the buildings. This was when firefighters noticed a kitchen fire that had been put out by the building’s sprinkler system, which was in the unit where the fire started.

Firefighters conducted salvage and overhaul operations in the affected apartment and said there was no fire extension found. Additionally, there was no other smoke or fire on the other floors in the building, and the fire was under control by 9:08 p.m.

However, the apartments on the first floor (right under the unit where the fire happened) were affected by water damage, from the sprinkler system. 

The apartment complex’s management relocated the two occupants who were displaced from the fire.

The City of Williamsburg’s Community Risk Reduction team is investigating the cause of the fire and said no injuries were reported.

Apartment Building, Residential

Richmond, VA – Apartment fire put out by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

The Richmond Fire Department reported a working fire at 800 N. Davis Avenue on Monday night. Firefighters responded to the scene where they found heavy smoke coming out of room 1006.

The building has a sprinkler system which extinguished the fire and RFD says the incident is now under control.

No one was hurt or killed during this fire.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Salem, VA – Sprinkler system controls fire at tire company; No injuries reported

The Salem Fire & EMS Dept. is crediting a sprinkler system with helping to control a fire at a tire company Tuesday night.

Around 9:20 p.m., crews were dispatched to Yokohama Tire Corp. in the 1500 block of Indiana Street.

A moderate amount of smoke was coming from the building when the first unit arrived on scene. Within seven minutes of arrival, the fire was under control.

All personnel was safely evacuated from the building and no injuries were reported.

The fire was determined to be accidental; it caused about $10,000 in damage, according to the Salem Fire & EMS Fire Marshal’s Office.

Other - Retail, Retail

Springfield, VA – Fire at auto shop contained by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

Units from Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department and the Fort Belvoir Fire and Emergency Services responded to a reported building fire in the 7600 block of Loisdale Road in the Springfield area of Fairfax County Oct. 6 at 11:51 a.m.

Crews arrived on the scene of a large, two-story auto dealership with smoke coming out of multiple garage bay doors. Crews quickly located fire in and below a vehicle that was being serviced and up on a lift. The fire sprinkler system activated and kept the fire contained until it was able to be fully extinguished by firefighters. There were no civilian or fire fighter injuries reported.

Approximately 50 people were in the building when the fire occurred. The fire was discovered in the repair shop bay by the workers in that area.

Fire investigators determined the fire was accidental in nature and started in the service bay area. The fire was caused by the arcing of a battery-operated tool that had been doused in gasoline. The tool arced in the operator’s hands and caught fire. The operator dropped the burning tool and it landed in a pool of gasoline. The fire spread to the vehicle being worked on and surrounding combustibles.

No one was displaced because of the fire. Red Cross assistance was not needed. Damages as a result of the fire were approximately $51,254.

Apartment Building, Residential

Colonial Heights, VA – Unattended apartment kitchen fire extinguished by fire sprinklers

An apartment catches on fire after cooking was left unattended in the kitchen.

On July 13 at 9:50 p.m., Colonial Heights Fire and EMS with Chesterfield Truck 12 were dispatched to the 200 block of Archer Avenue for an apartment fire.

Units arrived on the scene to find a fire in the kitchen had been extinguished by the fire sprinkler system.

Crews say minor damage was done to the apartment.

Two residents received burns after attempting to move the burning cookware from the stove to the sink.

The burns were non-life-threatening with one person being treated at the scene and the other was transported to MCV.

Occupants in the apartment and adjacent apartments were displaced. Red Cross was on scene to assist them if needed.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Chesterfield County, VA – Sprinkler system contains bathroom fire at local Kroger; No injuries reported

Chesterfield Fire officials tell 8News a Midlothian-area Kroger was evacuated Wednesday evening after a bathroom fire activated the store’s water sprinkler system.

Fortunately, no one was hurt.

Fire crews were called to the 3000 block of Polo Parkway, inside The Shoppes at Bellgrade, for a public service call just before 7 p.m. Chesterfield Fire officials tell 8News that while details remain limited, the grocery store did suffer an unspecified amount of water damage.

An employee told 8News at the scene that the fire was discovered inside the family bathroom.

Apartment Building, Residential

Loudoun, VA – Apartment kitchen fire controlled by fire sprinkler system

Damage from a Sunday night kitchen fire in a Sterling apartment was limited by an automatic sprinkler system, according to Loudoun County Fire-Rescue.

The fire occurred just after 9 p.m. June 28 at a second-floor Ridgehaven Terrace residence in the Cascades Overlook neighborhood. Emergency units from Cascades,Sterling Park, Kincora, Ashburn, and Fairfax County were called to the scene.

The fire was extinguished before crews arrived. Two apartment units were damaged by water from the sprinkler system and a total of six residents from the two residences were displaced. 

The fire was determined to accidental and a result of unattended food on the stove.

According to the Fire Marshal’s Office, the incident illustrates both the dangers of unattended cooking—a frequent cause of house fires—as well as the importance of lifesaving sprinkler systems.

“It’s important to educate the public about how automatic fire sprinklers help to contain and prevent fires from becoming more significant emergencies,” stated Fire Chief Keith Johnson. “Fire sprinklers save lives, including those of first responders, and greatly reduce the physical, emotional and financial damages that fires bring to a community.”

Apartment Building, Residential

Bristol, VA – Apartment kitchen fire controlled by sprinkler system

Five people were rescued Monday night when firefighters responded to a blaze in one unit at Douglass School Apartments in Bristol, Virginia.

Multiple crews arrived at the scene after the fire was reported at 9:17 p.m. at the apartment complex off Oakview Avenue, according to Mike Armstrong, the city’s fire chief.

Firefighters located the fire in the kitchen area of an apartment, where it appeared to have started on a stovetop with some type of combustible material, Armstrong said.

A sprinkler system contained the fire in the apartment where it started, but surrounding apartments still suffered water damage, he said.

A total of five occupants were evacuated from various apartments, and one person was treated for smoke inhalation but was not transported to a hospital, Armstrong said. No other injuries were reported.

Although the fire damage was contained, water damage in other apartments displaced at least two occupants, and the Red Cross is assisting them, he said.

The fire was determined to be accidental, the fire chief said.

Apartment Building, Residential

Stafford, VA – Single sprinkler head activates to control third-floor apartment fire; No injuries reported

Flames went up and a sprinkler system activated at a Stafford County apartment complex.

Fire crews were called Friday, April 11, 2020, at 6:22 a.m., to 855 Abberley Drive, near the Cavalier Family Skating Center, for a report of a fire in a third-floor apartment.

When they arrived, crews found smoke in the third-floor hallway, and fire in the kitchen of a third-floor apartment. The fire was extinguished before it could spread to other apartments, said county fire chief Joseph Cardello.

Several apartments sustained water damage, and a property management company was working to clean up and help the affected residents.

Smoke detectors activated the fire alarm for the entire building and a sprinkler head in the affected apartment activated. No injuries were reported.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, said Cardello.