Category Archives: Manufacturing Plant

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Erie, PA – Foundry fire knocked down by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Firefighters made quick work of an early-morning fire at an Erie foundry. It happened around 1:20 a.m. at Keystone Foundry on West 12th, in between Plum and Cascade streets. When crews got to the scene, it was a fire from one of the foundry’s furnaces that started spreading to the roof. “All in all, the fire was knocked down mainly by the sprinkler system,” said Deputy Fire Chief Mike Fahey. “We’re just kind of cleaning up and making sure it didn’t extend anywhere else.” No one was hurt.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Colorado Springs, CO – Sprinkler system activated for fire caused by a cigarette

A smoker nearly destroyed the Foxworth-Galbraith building in Colorado Springs, according to fire investigators.

The Colorado Springs Fire Department is reporting the sprinkler system played a major role in saving the building in the 4000 block of Interpark Dr. near Austin Bluffs Parkway and I-25. The sprinkler system set off an automatic alarm that called firefighters to the scene on April 13 at about 3:30 in the morning.

When crews arrived in the area they noticed smoke coming from the roof-line of the building. Firefighters were able to gain access to the property but had issues with finding a working hydrant.

“The CSFD identifies the sprinkler system activation as a success story for this structure,” Public Information Officer with the fire department Capt. Brian Vaughan wrote. “Without proper activation, this building may have ended in a total loss to the structure or worse considering life safety due to the occupancy and fuel loading. Colorado Springs Utilities is investigating the City hydrant failure currently and CSFD Fire Inspectors have inspected the site previously for loading too close to hydrants and are in the process of re-inspection for compliance moving forward.”

There were no injuries reported after 48 firefighters were called to the scene. The cause was due to “careless disposal of cigarettes” according to the fire department.

The fire department provided the following tips for smoking safety:

1-Always provide enough sturdy, fire and weatherproof, non-tipping, outdoor ashtrays for employees and house guests

2-Make sure your outdoor smoking area does not slope towards any structure

3- Do not toss cigarettes out of any vehicle that you are driving or while you are walking at any time or anywhere. It is a fire hazard, and it is also littering

4-Never toss a cigarette into landscaping, yards, drains, on decks, or driveways and roadways

5-If you smoke cigarettes responsibly and always discard them in the fire-safe receptacle, then you can prevent fires

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Green Bay, WI – Sprinkler system extinguished fire at packaging facility; No injuries reported

No one is hurt after an overnight fire at Green Bay Packaging in Green Bay. All the employees evacuated safely.

Firefighters say they found smoke when they arrived at the Radisson Street plant just after 9:30 Wednesday night, but it took some time to find the flames in the large building.

Fire crews from Howard and other communities surrounding Green Bay responded. They worked at the scene for several hours.

The fire was contained to a dust-collection unit on the roof, and was put out by a sprinkler system. Officials don’t yet have an estimate on how much damage the fire caused.

The fire generated so much smoke, Brown County Sheriff’s officials used the fan from the department’s air boat to clear it.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Colorado Springs, CO – Sprinkler system activated for fire at manufacturing building

The Colorado Springs Fire Department was called to a structure fire in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Smoke was visible from the manufacturing building Foxworth-Galbraith Truss & Wall Systems on Interpark Dr. but no flames were reported.

CSFD said the buildings’ smoke detectors and sprinkler systems were activated but the fire hydrants nearby were not working properly.

Firefighters had to call for back up and quickly began to ventilate the building.

Investigators are working to determine what caused the fire and the extent of any damages.

We will continue to monitor the developments and bring you the latest updates.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Spirit Lake, IA – Sprinkler system contained fire at motorcycle manufacturing plant

A fire broke out at the Polaris Industries Spirit Lake facility on April 10. Polaris owns Indian Motorcycle, and the facility is used to build the motorcycles. The fire started in near the paint station in the facility. The building’s sprinkler system took care of the flames near the ground.

While most of the fire was put out by the sprinkler system, the fire department did have to go in and extinguish some flames. The insulation in the ceiling of the building caught fire, according to RideApart, and that caused quite a lot of smoke. The fire department had to enlist the help of another fire department with the proper equipment to enter the building due to the level of smoke. It then had to ventilate the building to get the smoke out.

RideApart notes the Spirit Lake facility caught fire before. The previous fire happened in September of 2018. That fire, too, started in the paint area of the facility. After that fire, production was able to resume the same day. After this fire, production halted for one day, but it was set to resume on April 11.

Polaris Industries mentioned no delivery delays. I’m assuming everyone will get their Indian bike on time. With more than one fire stemming from the same area of the facility, maybe Indian should take a second look at its safety protocols.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Holyoke, MA – Machinery fire at medical device manufacturer is contained by sprinkler system

A machine at a company which manufactures medical devices caught fire Tuesday afternoon. No one was injured in the blaze, which was contained to one machine at Marox Corp., on 373 Whitney Ave., Fire Capt. Kevin Cavagnac said. The fire was reported at about 2 p.m. and sprinklers in the building prevented the fire from spreading from the machine, he said. The fire caused minimal damage to the building, but utilities were shut off temporarily because of the water from the sprinkler system, he said.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Nashua, NH – Factory fire held in check by sprinkler system; Firefighters extinguish blaze

Fire officials credited the sprinkler system in a large Crown Street factory with holding a smoky fire at bay until firefighters were able to get inside and attack the source of the flames late Saturday night. Capt. Karl Gerhard said crews responded shortly after 10 p.m. to Greenerd Press & Machine Co., 41 Crown St., after an activated sprinkler head triggered the building’s fire alarm system. At first, Gerhard said, firefighters found no indication of smoke or fire on three sides of the building. However, upon entering a secured fenced-off portion of the property and checking the fourth side, they cold see heavy smoke inside and water flowing from the sprinkler.

Crews forced their way in, and were met with “a heavy smoke condition” that caused “near-zero visibility,” Gerhard said. Due in large part to the size of the building, Gerhard said officials called for a working-fire response, which brought an additional engine and ladder truck to the scene. Meanwhile, firefighters, operating a hose line, made their way to the fire, which, Gerhard said, was being kept in check by water from the sprinkler.

Crews promptly extinguished the fire, which was declared under control 19 minutes after the first dispatch. Gerhard said crews spent an hour setting up large fans to remove smoke from the building. Nobody was inside at the time of the fire, and no injuries were reported. Gerhard said it appears the fire damage is minor, and that Greenerd employees will be able to conduct business as usual.

He said fire officials, after investigating the scene, ruled the fire accidental. Its likely cause, Gerhard said, was the improper disposal of rags containing chemicals used for staining, which resulted in spontaneous combustion. He pointed out the importance of reading and following manufacturers’ instructions regarding the proper disposal of cleaning rags, and cloths and rags used to apply finishing products.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Palatine, IL – Fire at plating company controlled with help from automatic sprinkler system

An automatic sprinkler helped control a fire that broke out Wednesday night at a manufacturing plant in Palatine, authorities said Thursday. Firefighters were dispatched to the Arlington Plating Co., 600 S. Vermont St., at 10:43 p.m. and upon arrival found smoke from the fire as well as water from an automatic sprinkler that had activated, according to a news release. The fire was declared under control at 11:01 p.m., officials said. Crews stayed on scene into the early morning hours to ventilate the building and perform salvage, overhaul and investigative activities.

One employee suffered non-life-threatening injuries, and was taken to Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights. It was the second fire in less than a week in Palatine that was controlled by an automatic sprinkler, authorities said. A sprinkler was activated in a downtown condominium fire March 14. The fire Wednesday night was contained to the area where it started, though a cost estimate of damages wasn’t available. Authorities said the cause remains under investigation.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Hawkesbury, ON, Canada – Fire at thermoplastics manufacturing plant contained with help from sprinkler system

There was a minor fire at the Prémoulé thermoplastics plant on Tessier Street in Hawkesbury last Friday evening. According to the Hawkesbury Fire Department, the call arrived at 9:14 p.m. and the fire happened inside the plant. Nobody was working inside at the time and the building’s sprinkler system functioned properly. Firefighters quickly had the situation under control, but the smell of smoke remained outside the plant. The Champlain Fire Department station in L’Orignal was called for assistance as there was some concern at the beginning about having enough firefighters available to respond. Once the fire was under control, Hawkesbury firefighters were going to go into the plant to investigate the cause. According to Plant Director Steve Kennedy, 91 people work at the facility. He said the cost of the fire could not be verified and that on Monday, everything at the plant was back to normal. Prémoulé manufactures countertops and cupboard doors.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Bowling Green, OH – Fire in large manufacturing facility extinguished by sprinkler system

A fire in a compressor at a Bowling Green business caused the evacuation of the building. The Bowling Green Fire Division was called to Vehtek, 2125 Wood-Bridge Blvd., at 12:56 p.m. Sunday for a fire in the southeast corner of the plant. The division sent two engines and its aerial truck, but the building’s sprinkler system extinguished the fire before their arrival.

It was a large fire in the second-floor production area, said Fire Chief Bill Moorman. His crews stayed on scene to shut the sprinkler system off and evacuate the smoke. Middleton Township Fire responded with automatic aid with two vehicles and Medic 120 also responded. Fire crews left the scene at 1:44 p.m.