All posts by viking210

Apartment Building, Residential

Madison, WI – Fourth floor apartment cooking fire extinguished by fire sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Madison firefighters responded to a kitchen fire Saturday evening after cooking oil caught fire on a stove top.

Firefighters arrived to the 100 block of North Livingston Street at 6:15 p.m. Crews made their way to the fourth floor of an apartment building where they encountered water in the hallway.

According to an incident report, firefighters found that the building’s fire sprinkler system had activated and extinguished the fire. Officials said the water had also made its way to the apartments below.

The two occupants of the apartment told firefighters they were not injured.

According to the report, fire damage was minimal. Four apartment units sustained water damage from the sprinklers.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Lake Charles, LA – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire set by former grocery store employee

A Moss Bluff man was arrested on Friday for setting a fire inside of a grocery store where he used to work.

Spencer Wallace, 19, was booked into the Calcasieu Parish Jail and is facing one count of aggravated arson, public affairs director for the State Fire Marshal’s Office Ashley Rodrigue said.

Calcasieu Fire District responded to a fire at the Market Basket grocery store on the 300 block of Sam Houston Jones Parkway in Moss Bluff.

After assessing the scene and analyzing store surveillance video, which shows Wallace standing near the manager’s booth and setting a fire in a trash can, SFM investigators determined the fire was intentionally set.

In the video, Wallace was seen walking away after setting the fire that spread to the booth before the store’s sprinkler system extinguished it.

Wallace admitted to setting the fire in an interview with investigators and was placed under arrest.

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.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Cool Springs, TN – Sprinkler system slows spread of fire after restaurant fryer malfunctions; No injuries reported

A Cool Springs restaurant fire Saturday morning was caused by a cooking equipment malfunction, according to Franklin Fire Marshal Andy King.

The Franklin Fire Department was dispatched to Bricktops restaurant, located at 1576 W. McEwen Dr., just before 9 a.m. Firefighters arrived to find smoke showing and fire on the roof.

King said the restaurant had been closed due to the coronavirus but had reopened Saturday morning to prepare takeout and delivery orders for the Easter weekend. He said a fryer malfunctioned when it was re-started and ignited the fire.

According to King, employees attempted unsuccessfully to extinguish the fire, which spread through the hood system to the roof.

King credited the activation of the automatic fire sprinkler system with greatly reducing damage and slowing the spread of fire inside the building. He also credited the quick response of Franklin firefighters, as well as units from Brentwood Fire & Rescue, which were dispatched via the cities’ mutual aid agreement.

King estimated damage at $50,000. No one was injured.

Apartment Building, Residential

Salisbury, MD – Sprinkler system controls apartment fire intentionally set by tenant; No injuries reported

The Maryland State Fire Marshal says a Salisbury man has been charged with intentionally setting a fire at his apartment Friday night. 

According to the fire marshal’s office, crews with the Salisbury Fire Department responded to an automatic fire alarm call shortly before 11:30 p.m. at the Pine Bluff Village Apartments on Riverside Drive. While on their way, officials say the call was upgraded to a building fire.

Once on scene, crews says people were already evacuating. The fire was in a second floor apartment, being controlled by the building’s automatic fire sprinkler system. It took about 45 minutes to bring the fire under control.

The fire marshal’s office arrived on scene, and crews said they determined it was incendiary. Investigations determined the tenant was responsible for setting the fire in the apartment.

The Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office arrested 38-year-old Alan Jackson Banks III at a nearby convenience store. Banks was charged with first-degree arson and reckless endangerment. 

There were no reported injuries. 

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Los Angeles, CA – Fire sprinklers stop fire from spreading at downtown LA business; No injuries reported

Fire crews Thursday afternoon extinguished a blaze in downtown Los Angeles before it damaged some boxes at a business under the Santa Monica (10) Freeway.

Firefighters were sent to the 600 block of East 16th Street, near San Pedro Street, about 4:15 p.m., according to Brian Humphrey of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

The exterior fire was extending into a commercial building, activating the building’s sprinkler system, but fire crews quickly extinguished the blaze before it burned more than a couple of boxes at the unidentified business, he said.

No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire was under investigation, he said.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Normal, IL – Hotel coffee and souvenir shop fire stopped by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

A fire at the Marriott Hotel and Conference Center in Normal caused an evacuation and the closure of the coffee and souvenir shop Thursday morning.

The Normal Fire Department was called to the hotel just after 7:30 a.m. for a report of a fire in the Caffeina’s Marketplace Cafe.

Hotel operations were unaffected by the blaze.

Heavy damage was reported to the cafe itself and water damage throughout the lobby. A dollar estimate of damage was not available by Thursday afternoon.

No injuries were reported in the incident, according to the NFD.

An employee attempted to use a fire extinguisher but the hotel’s sprinkler system was activated to slow the spread of the fire, according to a release by the NFD.

An alarm sounded and hotel employees assisted guests to evacuate safely.

The NFD reported the atrium smoke evacuation system activated and began rapidly ventilating the smoke from the atrium while firefighters pulled hoses into the building to extinguish the fire.  The fire was deemed out in about 25 minutes.  Firefighters searched and extinguished hot spots and used tools to open up the ceiling space and some of the wall spaces within the café to look for fire hidden in the void spaces.   

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Lee’s Summit, MO – Fire sprinklers contain fire to truck at service garage

On Tuesday, April 7, 2020, at 4:16 a.m., the Lee’s Summit Fire Department responded to 1150 SE Hamblen Road for an automatic fire alarm. When crews arrived, they found the service garage at Sutton Trucking filled with thick smoke and upgraded the incident to a structure fire.

Crews entered to the smoke filled service area and located a fire in a commercial truck.  The sprinkler system had activated over the truck and contained the fire to the vehicle. Crews completed extinguishment of the fire inside the truck and removed the smoke from the building. A search of the entire building confirmed it was unoccupied. The incident was under control by 5:09 a.m.

Fire damage was contained to the truck with smoke damage to the remainder of the service area. Closed doors kept the smoke out of the offices. The fire is believed to have been caused by an undetermined failure within the vehicle.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Green Valley, AZ – Fire sprinklers put out restaurant fire

A small fire has closed 19th Hole Bar & Grille in Green Valley just weeks after it was reduced to takeout-only service because of coronavirus.

But owner Greg Hansen said it won’t affect Easter dinner if you planned to order from them.

The fire broke out near the back door in a pile of rags that Hansen suspects spontaneously combusted. He said surveillance video led him to that conclusion.

Green Valley Fire District firefighters were called to the restaurant in the Best Western hotel near the southeastern corner of La Canada and Esperanza at 11:46 p.m. Sunday.

A GVFD spokesman said the fire likely was put out by sprinklers; 15 firefighters responded.

Cause of the fire is under investigation, and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department sent an arson investigator, which is standard in these cases.

Hansen estimated there is about $10,000 in damage and said he’ll likely be closed a couple of weeks. No equipment was damaged, he said. But he said the restaurant will be a pickup point for Easter carryout, which will be prepared at Longhorn Grill in Amado, which he also owns. He said people can order by calling (520) 977-4645 or (520) 398-0700.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Winnipeg, MB, Canada – Confirmed arson fire stopped from spreading at hotel thanks to fire sprinkler system

The city says firefighters were called to the scene of a fire at a hotel in the 1800 block of Wellington Avenue around 3:19 p.m. on Friday. While crews were responding, the city said further reports were made to 911 that there was a fire in one of the suites.

Firefighters found smoke in the first floor hallway of the hotel and began an offensive attack. The city said the fire was under control very quickly, thanks in part to the hotel’s automatic sprinkler system that had activated and stopped the fire from spreading.

Other areas of the hotel had some minor smoke and water damage. The city said there are no damage estimates at this time.

All the people in the hotel were able to self-evacuate, and one person was assessed by paramedics on scene but did not need to go to the hospital. There were no other injuries reported.

Police confirmed that the fire was a result of arson.