Tag Archives: Washington

Other Business, Place of Worship

Seattle, WA – Church fire during worship service controlled by sprinkler system

As reported on West Seattle Blog (Statement from Rev. Leah Atkinson Bilinski to Fauntleroy Church congregation):

This morning, during our worship service, we experienced a small fire in our fourth floor library. The fire was accidentally caused by a child (who was not physically harmed, but who is quite emotionally upset). The sprinkler system worked as it should, and the fire was contained to a very small area within the library.

Water did soak walls and flooring on the fourth floor outside the library, office floor below (outside of offices), lobby, and one bathroom in the narthex as it came through the ceiling.

A big thank you to all of our volunteers who jumped right to work cleaning up what water we could before the professionals arrived this afternoon. Bless you, bless you, bless you!

Our annual meeting will be rescheduled and we will be in touch with that new date within the next few days. If pieces of Music Sunday are able to rescheduled, we’ll also let you know that.

The fire was small, and we are a strong, healthy church. All will be well!

As we rejoice in that wellness, let us remember to pray today for those who are not well, notably those involved in the horribly tragic loss of life in Orlando. Let us pray for those lost, their families, LGBTQ families everywhere and a world in which so much hate still exists and is allowed to fester.

And to those prayers, I ask a smaller, but special additional prayer — for one very scared child and her family today, who need to know us as their church family. Love is so powerful, and I thank God for a church that loves well and adds love to a world in such desperate need of it.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Naches, WA – Machinery fire at wood products manufacturer contained by sprinkler system

A smoking piece of machinery at Spinner Wood Products triggered an early morning response from the Naches and Gleed fire departments today. At about 4:11 a.m., firefighters responded to a fire alarm activated from the business, located at 10533 Old Naches Highway. Naches fire chief Alan Baird said the alarm was for a trip to the sprinkler system.

Baird said he originally upgraded the incident to a second-alarm fire as they didn’t know the size of the fire. It was determined that the fire originated in a piece of machinery used for printing names on pallets and bins. The combination of heat from the machine’s electrical motor and sawdust smoldered for hours, Baird said.

The fire was contained to the machine thanks to the sprinkler system, which activated over the machine in question. Baird said they wrapped up shortly after 6 a.m.; the fire chief added 10 firefighters were on scene.

Residential, Single Family Home

Camas, WA – Fire in house under construction is extinguished by sprinklers

A fire started in a Camas home under construction sometime over the weekend, and fire sprinklers installed in the house put out the fire before anyone noticed.

The home, at 3210 N.W. Hood Court, Camas, is in the sheetrock phase of construction, according to an email from Randy Miller, deputy fire marshal at the Camas-Washougal Fire Department, and the fire started in the laundry room wall and burned into the home’s entry way and attic.

Even though there were plastic protective cups over the sprinkler heads to protect them during construction, “the plastic covers still melted away in time for the two heads that were heat activated to control and extinguish the fire,” Miller wrote.

The fire department was called Monday morning after the subdivision supervisor for Pahlisch Homes unlocked the house and saw the damage. Fire Marshal Ron Schumacher and Miller investigated the fire, and “give credit to the fire sprinklers for avoiding to have our fire crews dispatched to a fully involved structure fire with exposures in the form of other homes under construction,” Miller wrote.

This was the fourth Camas house fire put out by a home sprinkler system, according to Miller. At the Camas city council meeting on April 18, the councilors voted unanimously in favor of an ordinance requiring all newly built homes in the city to contain fire sprinklers, although many residents in Camas have been installing them in new homes for more than a decade because of a fee waiver the city put in place in 2003.

Last year, 215 new homes were built in Camas, and all but one of them were built with a fire sprinkler system.

 

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Ellensburg, WA – Business owner thankful that sprinklers helped stop fire at wood products company

A sprinkler system and quick response by firefighters helped limit damage from a fire at Wood Products Northwest in Ellensburg on Tuesday night.

It was caused by spontaneous combustion of rags soaked in oil-based paint.

Kittitas Valley Fire and Rescue received an alarm call about a sprinkler activation at 11:15 p.m. Tuesday at 409 S. Water St. KVFR Deputy Chief Rich Elliott said the department upgraded the alarm to a full response, and found a fire in a room used for cabinet finishes.

“The sprinkler system activated and was keeping the fire under control,” he said.

No one was in the building at the time.

Robert Hamlin, who owns the business with his wife, said he is thankful the sprinklers and fire alarm activated and for KVFR’s quick response.

When he arrived on scene at about midnight, much of the fire was already out, he said.

The fire was in the back of the business’ finish department, which has a three-hour firewall.

“Everything went the best it could. This could have been a huge disaster,” he said. “Combustibles, once they get going, can overwhelm the sprinkler system.”

Firefighters extinguished the fire and spent a few hours helping with water removal.

Elliott said the fire was determined to be accidental. Hamlin said he is still figuring out the extent of the damages, but said it appeared to mostly be water damage.

He hopes his 18 employees can return to work within the next 48 hours.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Kent, WA – Sprinkler system protects building from fire caused by spontaneous combustion

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A business’s sprinkler system did exactly what it was designed to do when it contained a small fire in the 18600 block of 72 Avenue South on Tuesday, the Kent Regional Fire Authority reported.

No one was in the business at the time of the fire, though firefighters checked neighboring businesses as a precaution.

The system, which also sent a signal of a possible fire to the alarm company that monitored it, activated at 5:30 a.m. The closest emergency unit to the call was a fire engine from Tukwila. When they arrived, they found water coming from inside the large two-story, concrete tilt-up building. Because they knew that a sprinkler head had activated, they upgraded the incident to a “commercial fire,” which brought a full fire response.

Once additional firefighters from the Kent RFA and Renton RFA were able to get inside the building they found it filled with smoke, which made locating the fire more difficult. Once they found the seat of the fire, they were able to extinguish it quickly and shut down the sprinkler system to reduce additional water damage.

A fire investigator determined that there were two locations at the business where fire started. One was inside, which activated the sprinkler system, and one was on an exterior loading dock.

The cause of the fire was spontaneous combustion, after paper and filtering material, which were both saturated with paint, were placed in containers, fire officials said. Certain materials, when in a limited space, can self-generate heat until they catch fire. Paints, oils and compost are common causes of this type of combustion.

The fire is considered accidental.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Kent, WA – Early morning business fire extinguished by sprinkler system

Just before 5 a.m. on Thursday, units from Renton Fire Department, Tukwila Fire Department and Kent Regional Fire Authority were dispatched to a commercial fire in the 19800 block of 84th Avenue South in Kent. Initially a small response for an automatic fire alarm, the first unit that arrived upgraded the call to a commercial fire response after confirming smoke was present, according to a Kent RFA media release. The upgrade triggered the addition of more resources.

The building’s fire sprinkler system not only kept the fire in check, it actually extinguished the fire. A manual check along with confirmation from a thermal imaging camera assured there was no more fire. The business used its emergency evacuation plan to get employees outside to safety. A Kent fire investigator determined the fire to be accidental due to failure of a small electrical component. There were no injuries to employees or firefighters. The damage is estimated to be $10,000 and limited to a small area of the business. Employees were able to resume work relatively quickly after the fire was out and the building deemed safe.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Redmond, WA – Sprinklers limit damage in possible arson fire at restaurant

Firefighters think an arsonist may be to blame for an overnight fire at an Eastside restaurant. Investigators are at the Celtic Bayou restaurant in Redmond Thursday morning.  Someone who was walking by the restaurant at about 1 a.m. saw flames inside and called 911. The restaurant’s alarm company also notified the fire department when sprinklers inside went off.

There is not yet an official cause for the fire, but the Redmond Fire Department battalion chief said it could be arson. One of the reasons that the fire is suspicious is because the flames appeared have started just inside the front door to the restaurant.

Firefighters said had it not been for the sprinkler system, the fire damage would be been far worse. “The fire itself though was held in check by the sprinklers and probably would have been a much more significant fire if it hadn’t been for the sprinkler system activation,” Ralph Ashmore with the Redmond Fire Department said. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Richland, WA – Fire in storage room at hotel knocked down by sprinkler system

Firefighters have extinguished a fire reported just before noon Easter day at the Shilo Inn in Richland. They arrived to find guests being evacuated, said Richland Battalion Chief Ron Duncan.  A space heater in a second-floor maintenance room had malfunctioned and set fire to furniture and walls, he said.

Two fire sprinklers activated to control the fire before firefighters arrived and Richland firefighters quickly put it out, he said. The water from the sprinkler system damaged the reception area on the first floor below the maintenance room, but the business remains open, he said.

Far more damage could have been caused by the fire if the sprinklers had not activated, he said.

Apartment Building, Residential

Olympia, WA – Sprinkler system knocks down fire at apartment complex

One family was displaced from an apartment at 1309 Fern St. SE in west Olympia late Friday after a fire, according to the Olympia Fire Department. Firefighters responded to reports of a kitchen fire and found that the sprinkler system had activated by the time they arrived. One resident sustained cuts to the hand after breaking open a glass door to access a fire extinguisher. No other injuries were reported.

Damage to the apartment was estimated at about $5,000. The fire likely was an electrical fire. The family is being assisted by the American Red Cross. The rest of the apartment complex was undamaged. The Olympia Fire Department responded to the fire with four engines, one ladder truck, two medic units and a command unit

Apartment Building, Residential

Vancouver, WA – Apartment fire caused by unattended candle is limited by sprinkler system

Sprinklers at a Vancouver apartment complex limited the fire damage from a Tuesday morning blaze to a single unit, fire officials said. Firefighters were called to Redwood Acres apartments, 3409 N.E. 62nd Ave. in Vancouver’s Bagley Downs neighborhood, about 5:15 a.m., Vancouver firefighter Pete Adams said. Arriving crews reported a working fire coming from the third floor and that all of the occupants had evacuated, Adams said.

The sprinklers kept the fire from spreading, and arriving crews doused the flames, bringing it under control in about 20 minutes, Adams said. There were no injuries. The unit affected was heavily damaged by fire, adjacent units sustained smoke damage and the units below sustained some water damage, Adams said. Vancouver Fire Marshal Heidi Scarpelli said that the total damage is estimated at $60,000.

The two people who lived in the fire-damaged unit were displaced, Adams said, but apartment management was making plans to house them in a different unit. Scarpelli said the fire was caused by an unattended candle left in the bedroom near the head of the bed.

“The important note here is that a lit candle is an open flame, it’s definitely a fire hazard,” Scarpelli said. “This was definitely a preventable fire. … It was fortunate that the apartment complex had a sprinkler system that was completely operational and functioned the way it was designed.”