Category Archives: Hotel / Restaurant

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Santee, SC – Sprinkler system activates; Helps limit damage in fire at landmark restaurant

A landmark barbecue restaurant in Santee that was damaged by fire on Thursday is scheduled to reopen soon.  The Santee Fire Department was called to Lone Star Barbecue and Mercantile on State Park Road just after 9 a.m. Firefighters say a sprinkler system in the kitchen sprayed the flames until emergency crews arrived.

Fire Chief Edward Barnett, Jr. says the fire started in a smoke chipper drain under a meat oven.  The amount of damage hasn’t been estimated.  The restaurant is closed temporarily. A sign outside indicates management hopes to reopen on March 19.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Chelsea, MA – Sprinklers help contain late night restaurant fire

On Saturday, March 7, at 12:06 a.m., the fire department responded to the report of a building fire at 17 Fifth St., above the Isla Tropical Restaurant. Crews reported the sprinkler system had activated on the second floor and located the fire inside one of the residential units. Items left on top of the stove ignited and the flames quickly spread to the cabinets above. Crews extinguished the fire and remained on scene checking for extension until approximately 3:30 a.m. Damage is estimated at $30,000. No occupants were injured.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Pearland, TX – Commercial kitchen fire extinguished by sprinkler system

** NO MEDIA COVERAGE – Fire Dept Reported **  The Pearland Fire Department responded to a report of a grease fire in a commercial kitchen at an area restaurant located in the 2800 block of Business Center Dr. on Tuesday, March 10. After arriving, fire department officials discovered that the fire had been extinguished by the fire sprinkler system installed in the building.

Because the fire sprinkler system installed at the restaurant worked as it was designed, no property damage or loss of life occurred during this incident. According to National Fire Prevention Association, cooking fires make up approximately 55 percent of the fires that occur in restaurants and are responsible for 59 percent of the civilian deaths related to restaurant fires. The fires can cause the secondary ignition of grease that has accumulated on the vent hood from grease-laden vapors that are produced normally during the operation of the kitchen.

These fires can travel through the kitchen ductwork and result in a devastating fire that, depending on the amount of fuel present, can be greater in intensity and particularly difficult for firefighters to extinguish.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Minden, NV – Sprinklers knock down blaze at popular restaurant

A kitchen fire shortly before midnight closed Katie’s Country Kitchen for the breakfast and lunch rush on Tuesday.

The popular Minden restaurant inside the Carson Valley Inn reopened at 5:20 p.m. Tuesday, Marketing Director Bill Henderson said.

“Our sincere thanks to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the East Fork Fire and Paramedic District who responded very quickly to the alarm,” Henderson said.

East Fork Fire District personnel responded after security called 911 at 11:45 p.m. in response to a fire in the prep cook area.

Deputy Chief Dave Fogerson said the fire sprinkler system extinguished the blaze. When firefighters arrived heavy smoke was still coming from the exhaust system.

The restaurant was evacuated while firefighters confirmed the fire was out and had not spread into the surrounding structure.

Henderson said no one was hurt in the fire and that the system functioned as designed with no major damage.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Shreveport, LA – Fire on sixth-floor of Holiday Inn contained to one room by sprinkler system

Heavy smoked filled a sixth-floor room at the Holiday Inn Shreveport on Monday afternoon, activating the sprinkler system and triggering an alarm that resulted in at least 20 fire units being dispatched to the hotel (blog note: fire sprinklers are only activated by heat, not smoke).

The exact cause of the smoke and fire was unknown late Monday as fire investigators worked the scene. No injuries were reported. The room is unusable, but most of the building was not damaged.

“The fire was contained, basically, to one room on the sixth floor and there were other rooms that sustained smoke damage,” said Fred Sanders, assistant to the fire chief. The sprinklers immediately activating helped minimize damage to the room, Sanders said. Firefighters also doused the room as a safety precaution.

Ed Socha, Holiday Inn Shreveport general manager, said employees and about 40 guests staying at the hotel were evacuated. As a standard procedure, some employees were checked out by EMS at the scene.

The room at the center of the smoky scene was rented, but the guest wasn’t there when the fire started, Socha said. Socha said he didn’t see flames. “Just because of the smoke damage, it’s (the room) going to have to be completely redone,” he said. The hotel was to undergo an annual inspection today but it will be postponed, Socha said.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Duluth, GA – Sprinkler system extinguishes overnight fire at Hilton Garden Inn

A basket of rags caught fire in the kitchen of a Gwinnett County hotel Monday morning.  The hotel’s sprinkler system extinguished the flames, which broke out at around 2:30 a.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn in the 2000 block of Sugarloaf Circle.

Gwinnett County Fire Lt. Jerrod Barrett said the fire started in a basket of cooking oil rags.   About 60 guests and hotel staff members were briefly evacuated from the building while firefighters investigated the source of the fire.  Barrett said the guests were soon able to return to their rooms.

Investigators believe the fire was caused by spontaneous combustion of the rags in their plastic cart.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Lawrence, KS – Sprinkler system activates to help limit fire spread at downtown restaurant; No injuries

Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical crews battled flames at Bigg’s on Mass, 719 Massachusetts St., Tuesday afternoon.  Division Chief Eve Tolefree said fire sprinkler activation inside the restaurant aided in preventing the fire from spreading farther than it did.

Shortly after 2:30 p.m., crews reported the situation “under control.” Around 3 p.m., they began ventilating the restaurant and surrounding businesses.

Damage estimates for the affected businesses were not available Tuesday evening. Investigators remained on the scene as of 5 p.m.  Bigg’s owner Doug Holiday said he would like to reopen his restaurant as early as Saturday.  “We hope to reopen this weekend, if not, as soon as possible,” Bigg’s posted to its Facebook page Tuesday evening. “Thank you to everyone who has sent kind words our way.”

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Dayton, OH – Sprinklers keep fire from spreading at Bravo! restaurant

A fire damaged the kitchen at Bravo! by the Dayton Mall. Firefighters forced their way into the restaurant on Miamisburg Centerville Road in Miami Twp. around 1 a.m. No employees were present, but crews found smoke inside, according to Miami Valley Fire District Battalion Chief Steve Meadows.

The sprinkler system kept the flames from spreading, but the fire did moderate to severe damage in the kitchen, Meadows said. Meadows also said the restaurant could be closed for a few days

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Brick, NJ – Sprinklers save restaurant after fire breaks out in bathroom

A fire broke out in one of the restrooms at a new Brick Township restaurant. The Flaming Grille, a buffet-style restaurant in the Kennedy Mall shopping center, nearly lived up to its name Tuesday afternoon when a fire broke out about 4 p.m., officials said.

The Breton Woods and Pioneer Hose fire companies responded to the scene and found the fire had already been put out by the restaurant’s sprinkler system, said Kevin Batzel, director of the Brick Township Bureau of Fire Prevention.

Batzel said investigators determined the fire was started when smoking materials had been disposed of in the bathroom trash can. The activation of the sprinkler system helped avert a much larger fire, Batzel said. One sprinkler head activated during the incident.

“It’s an old building,” Batzel explained. “[The fire] would have traveled up pretty fast into that building.” There were a small number of patrons in the restaurant at the time, Batzel said. All were evacuated. The bureau is following up today at the restaurant, which is back in operation. “If it was not for the sprinkler system, that restaurant would be shut down,” said Batzel.