Monthly Archives: July 2017

Other - Retail, Retail

Marysville, WA – Sprinkler systems helps control fire at retail store; Fire started in semi-truck attached outside

Firefighters were called to the Value Village store on State Avenue just after midnight Sunday. A fire was burning in a semi-truck attached to the store and had spread into the building, said Christie Veley, spokeswoman for the Marysville Fire District. Crews went through the store’s roof. It took about three hours to bring the blaze under control. A sprinkler system in the store helped limit the spread of the fire. The store was not open Sunday morning, but employees were working on clean-up and hoped to open in the afternoon. Value Village sells second-hand clothes, furniture and other household items. The Snohomish County fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire, and plans to review surveillance video from the store.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Nashua, NH – Middle of night nursing home fire contained by sprinkler system

A fire at the Courville Nursing Home early Sunday sent one person to the hospital and forced more than 50 patients to be relocated to another facility, authorities said. One person was taken to Southern New Hampshire Medical Center for evaluation and possible smoke inhalation, according to the fire department. Fire crews responded to 22 Hunt St. just before 2 a.m. and found a fire in one of the patient rooms on the second floor. Staff already had removed two patients from that room. The fire was contained by the activated sprinkler heads. Fire crews put out the remaining fire.

Second-floor patients were removed from the fire area and sheltered in a safe location until areas could be ventilated and water removal efforts completed, according to the fire department.  “Due to smoke and water damage to several wings of the facility, a coordinated effort of Nashua Fire Rescue, Courville Nursing Home and various ambulance providers, 50-plus patients were relocated to Greenbrier Nursing Home until repairs and cleanup in areas of the facility can be completed,” the fire department said.

The cause remains under investigation. “Sprinklers in this case quickly contained the fire until the arrival of the fire department,” authorities said.

Government/Military

Houston, TX – Terminal fire at Bush Intercontinental Airport suppressed with help from sprinkler system

** BLOG NOTE: Smoke does not cause a sprinkler to activate.  Only heat from a fire **
A spokesman for Bush Intercontinental Airport says a sprinkler system was activated when charging batteries began to overheat and sent smoke into a terminal. Spokesman Bill Begley says the fire alarm in Terminal E was sounded just before 1 a.m. Friday.  Houston police earlier said a small fire occurred in the terminal but Begley says there were no flames. He says the batteries, which were charging in a utility closet, just produced smoke.  There was some disruption because a cleaning crew needed time to clean up the water from the sprinklers.  Police told the Houston Chronicle that flights could be disrupted, but Begley says the incident did not result in any delays.

Other Business

Grand Junction, CO – Sprinkler system activates to help control fire at custom door business

Investigators are trying to figure out what started a fire at a local business Wednesday night. It happened at Alpine Custom Doors in the 2800 block of Chipeta Avenue in Grand Junction, that’s north of I-70B, off of 28 1/2 Road.  The Grand Junction Fire Department said the flames started behind the building, then spread to the exterior of and eventually the inside of the building.  No one was inside at the time and no one was hurt.  We’re told a sprinkler system did go off during the fire.  There’s no word right now on the cause or the extent of the damage.  Officials remind everyone that dangerous burning conditions still exist. During red flag warnings, and Stage 1 fire restrictions all burning is banned.

Place of Worship

Fort Wayne, IN – Sprinkler system saves church from significant damage in late evening fire

A small fire at Love Church on East Berry Street Wednesday night was largely put out by the building’s sprinkler system. Fort Wayne firefighters were dispatched shortly before 11 p.m. to 1331 East Berry Street, when the fire alarm activated.  Fire officials said the building’s fire suppression united put out most of the flames. Once firefighters got into the building they located a small fire in a storage area. Officials said a pile of items on the floor caught fire and put out a lot of smoke.  The fire was quickly contained by crews and the building was ventilated. Officials said had the sprinkler system not activated there could have been major damage to the church.  No one was inside at the time of the fire.  No injuries were reported.  It’s unclear how the fire started.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Columbia, MO – Hallway fire at senior living center suppressed by sprinkler system

The Columbia Fire Department responded to a report of a fire alarm with smoke in a hallway at 3700 Lenoir St (Lenoir Senior Services) on Thursday.  The fire started on the stove of an unoccupied apartment had been extinguished by the automatic sprinkler system when crews got to the apartment. There were no reported injuries and damage was limited to the one apartment. Smoke and water damages are estimated at $15,000.  According to the official release, Assistant Fire Marshal Kyle Edwards investigated the fire and has ruled the fire accidental. The cause was a stove being inadvertently turned on, igniting combustibles being used to pack items for a move. No one was in the apartment at the time of the fire.