Category Archives: Hotel / Restaurant

Las Vegas, NV – Trash chute fire at Marriott hotel suppressed by sprinkler system

(staff reported – confirmed sprinkler operation)  Guests at the Marriott Grand Chateau were evacuated on Tuesday morning after a person called the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department claiming that they heard gunfire going off inside the building. The initial reports were mistaken, however, and it turned out that a fire had broken out inside the building at around 8:50 a.m.

Ed Kinney, vice president for corporate affairs and communications at Marriott Vacation Club, said there was a small fire in the trash chute area of the resort, and that the building was evacuated as a precaution. Guests were coming back into the building as of 10:20 a.m., Kinney said. In a statement, Clark County Fire Deputy Chief Jeff Buchanan said crews arrived to find light smoke in the building and a fire that was out in the laundry chute. Two people were taken to a hospital for smoke inhalation, and one person was being evaluated for minor burns, according to Buchanan.

Fernandina Beach, FL – Hotel fire contained with help from sprinkler system

The Fernandina Beach and Nassau County Fire Rescue Departments put out a fire quickly at the Amelia Hotel and Suites on Fletcher Avenue Sunday morning.

The hotel’s alarm system alerted firefighters to the fire. Firefighters made their way to the second floor and found the automatic sprinkler system had been activated. When entering the room, firefighters found heavy black smoke and a small fire on the floor involving the bed. 

All guests were evacuated from their rooms. Fernandina Fire Rescue says it took 15 minutes with the assistance from the sprinkler system to knock down the fire.

The hotel sustained water damage from the sprinkler activation. Fire officials say the fire is suspicious in nature and is being investigated by the State Fire Marshal’s Office along with the city Fire Marshal.

Ottumwa, IA – Sprinkler system extinguishes kitchen fire in strip mall

A fire alarm and the smell of smoke kicked the Ottumwa Fire Department into action. They arrived at about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday at 1111 N. Quincy Ave. in Quincy Plaza.

However, a press release from the city says that when firefighters arrived on scene, they found no active fire or smoke being emitted from the structure. Due to the age of the fire suppression system, it didn’t show exactly where the alarm was coming from.

Firefighters used their key system to gain access to the shops of the strip mall in attempts to locate the source of the smoke smell. That’s how they found the source, which was located at the Little Caesars Pizza section of the strip mall.

Yet the fire suppression system was sufficient to extinguish the fire by itself: Firefighters located an active sprinkler head which had suppressed a small fire in the kitchen area of the business.

According to the city statement, the damage to the entire complex would have been much greater without a properly working fire sprinkler system.

The business suffered water, smoke and fire damage.

The cause, the OFD says, looks to have been spontaneous combustion of oily rags kept in a container in the back of the kitchen.

The Ottumwa Fire Department was assisted by the Ottumwa Police Departments dispatchers to gain communications with the building owner and tenants.

Myrtle Beach, SC – Fire in 9th floor maintenance office of high-rise hotel contained with help from sprinkler system

Myrtle Beach Fire Department crews responded to a 2-alarm fire at a hotel in downtown Myrtle Beach shortly before 2 p.m. on Friday. MBFD Deputy Chief Tom Gwyer believes the fire started in a maintenance office on the 9th floor of the Monterey Bay Suites on Ocean Boulevard. The sprinkler system went off and the 9th and 10th floors were evacuated. Crews were able to get the fire under control.  Gwyer also says there were no injuries but initial crews who responded to the fire are recovering from the heat and climbing stairs in their gear. An Horry County ambulance is on scene in case crews need medical attention.

Rochester, NY – Sprinkler system limits spread of fire into condominium building; Fire started in outside patio

Rochester fire investigators are looking into the cause of an early morning fire Friday that caused damage to a business and nearby condominiums.  No injuries were reported in the second-alarm fire at about 1:30 a.m. at Side Bar located downtown at 242 South Avenue.  Firefighters responded after a resident at the Capron Street Condominiums felt the heat and saw the glow from the fire and pulled the fire alarm, said Capt. Ted Kuppinger of the Rochester Fire Department.  The condos, that are next to the building the bar is located in, also overlooks the outdoor patio where the fire started. No one was in the outdoor patio.

Condo residents felt the heat and saw the glow from the fire and pulled the fire alarm.  One to two condos aren’t inhabitable due to water damage after their sprinklers went off, Kuppinger said.  The interior of the bar also received water damage as well as smoke and heat damage.  “If it had not been for the sprinkler system we would have had a much bigger fire,” Kuppinger said.  The fire was under control in 20 minutes.

Des Moines, IA – Evening restaurant fire suppressed with help from sprinkler system

Des Moines fire captain Randy Jones said the grease fire began once a hot pan was transferred from a stovetop to a sink. Sprinklers installed in the ceiling put out the flames, but the eatery, located at 310 Court Ave., had to be evacuated and closed for the day — about three hours earlier than usual. The sprinklers went off at about 6:20 p.m. Thursday.

“We had quite a bit of water to remove,” Jones said. “The fire was out — it’s more or less just water damage. They need to have the sprinkler system activated again and they also need to have the health department come out and inspect everything before they reopen.

A couple dozen people were standing outside the more than 30-year-old Court Avenue fixture when the fire department arrived. Officials say they’re not sure how many customers were in the restaurant at the time of the fire.

Spaghetti Works managers said they plan to reopen the restaurant Friday.

Nashville, TN – Kitchen fire at downtown restaurant controlled with help from sprinkler system

Merchants in downtown Nashville is indefinitely closed due to a fire on Thursday morning.  The Nashville Fire Department responded to the Broadway establishment during the 8 a.m. hour to put out the fire.  The owners of Merchants said there was a small fire on the third floor kitchen caused by a smoker. The fire set off a sprinkler system and crews are busy at work cleaning all three floors and getting the building back in shape.  “The good news is, this building has seen much worse than this in the 100-plus-years that its been around, so we’ll be up and running in no time! We are trying to reopen for service tomorrow, June 1.” – Merchants  Currently, cause of the fire and extent of the damage has not been released.

Sacramento, CA – Sprinkler system contains restaurant fire; No injuries reported

Cosumnes Fire investigators determined that a discarded cigarette sparked a fire that damaged the BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse on May 11. The restaurant was evacuated that night and it was reopened the next day. No injuries were reported.

This fire first burned bark outside the restaurant on Laguna Springs Drive around 5 p.m. and then spread to the building. Cosumnes Fire Chief Mike McLaughlin said that evening’s strong winds fueled the fire and caused flames to burn a wall and spread into the attic.

“The fire sprinkler system worked as designed and contained the fire when one head activated,” he said.

Cosumnes, Sacramento City, and Sacramento County Metropolitan firefighters extinguished the fire.

Tysons Corner, VA – Sprinkler system extinguishes kitchen fire in restaurant; No injuries reported

Sprinklers prevented a fire from doing much damage at a Tysons Corner Center restaurant Tuesday.

When Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Units arrived to the restaurant in the 1900 block of Chain Bridge Road around 12:07 a.m., the fire had already been put out.

The restaurant was closed at the time, but one employee was present and found the fire. The employee unsuccessfully tried to put out the blaze with a fire extinguisher. The fire had been extinguished when three fire sprinkler heads activated. No one was injured.

Fire investigators determined that the fire started in the kitchen due to a plastic food storage cart being too close to a stove burner. The restaurant was closed pending a health department inspection, which is routine after fires. Red Cross services were not required with damage estimates around $300.

A spokesperson for Fairfax County Fire and Rescue did not specify which restaurant the fire occurred at.