Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Dallas, OR – Sprinklers prevent fire at RV manufacturing plant from spreading March 8, 2016 viking210 The investigation into the cause of today’s fire at Forest River in Dallas is ongoing, but fire officials know one thing for sure: the RV manufacturing plant’s interior sprinklers saved the day. “The sprinkler system, it worked perfectly,” said Fred Hertel, Dallas fire chief. Firefighters were called to the plant, at 1429 SE Uglow Ave., at about 11:55 a.m. By the time fire crews arrived, Forest River’s workers had been evacuated. According to firefighters on scene, the fire appears to have started on the outside of the building – though that hasn’t been officially confirmed yet – and traveled up the wall. The blaze triggered the sprinkler system, which knocked down the fire that had spread to the inside of the building. Hertel said given the size of the building, without the sprinkler system, the fire could have easily gotten out of control. Thankfully, the blaze was contained to one section of the wall on the backside at the plant. “It’s just a little fire,” Hertel said. “The sprinkler system prevented this from getting beyond our capabilities.” NW Natural, Pacific Power, and Polk No. 1 assisted Dallas Fire and EMS on the scene. The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Office is conducting the investigation
Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill Springfield, OR – Sawmill fire contained with help from sprinkler system March 7, 2016 viking210 Twenty-one firefighters responded Wednesday afternoon to a fire in the planing mill section of the Rosboro Lumber Co. mill at 2509 Main St. The fire was reported at 3:18 p.m. and declared under control by 4:30 p.m., Eugene Springfield Fire Department officials said. The planing mill section has been shut down, but the rest of the mill is operational, officials said. No employees or firefighters were reported injured. The cause of the fire, and estimated damage loss, were not immediately known. The mill’s fire sprinkler system helped control the fire, Meigs said, but firefighters had to use a thermal imaging system to spot isolated cases where the fire was spreading through the ceiling. Battalion Chief Ben Meigs said the amount of sawdust in the mill may have contributed to the spread of the fire, which “traveled up the walls, and up the ceilings.”
Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill Merritt, BC, Canada – Sprinklers help contain sawmill fire; Operations resume same day March 1, 2016 viking210 Merritt Fire Rescue responded to a fire at the Tolko sawmill around 1:30 Saturday afternoon. Fire Chief Dave Tompkinson says a hydraulic oil tank was on fire. “Prior to firefighters arriving, the sprinkler system had activated. The sawmill employees had actioned the fire with extinguishers and a hose line,” says Tompkinson. The fire was inside the the plant, and spread to some machinery above. Tomkinson says, as the fire department was leaving, the sawmill was already getting back up and running. The cause of the fire is unknown.
Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Burnaby, BC, Canada – Sprinkler system helps minimize fire damage at Serta mattress factory February 12, 2016 viking210 A long-time Burnaby warehouse suffered extensive smoke and water damage last week after a small fire broke out in the building. It was an automatic fire alarm ringing from inside the Serta mattress factory on Winston Street that alerted firefighters of an incident shortly before 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 2, assistant Fire Chief Bryan Kirk told the NOW. When firefighters arrived, there were two employees standing outside, but neither could say why the alarm was going off. “(The firefighters) went inside, and they realized there was something going on, the whole place was full of smoke, so they upgraded it to a second alarm,” Kirk said. The origin of the fire appeared to be a gluing table inside the warehouse, he added. “Between the mattress, the glue and this wooden table, (there was) enough combustibles – that started the fire,” Kirk said. There wasn’t significant fire damage inside the warehouse, thanks to the sprinkler system. Because of the size of the facility, the fire was upgraded to a two-alarm blaze that required about 28 firefighters. Fire crews were on scene until 10 p.m. trying to clear out the smoke. “The whole place was full of smoke, and it makes it that much more difficult to ventilate that much smoke,” he said. “(Firefighters) were there for a good six hours or so, just because it was work intensive getting rid of all the smoke, not so much fighting a fire.” The NOW contacted the manager at the warehouse for more details on the extent of the damage, but calls haven’t been returned yet
Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill Eau Claire, WI – Overnight machine fire at paper plant controlled by sprinkler system February 10, 2016 viking210 An early morning fire at the Cascades Tissue Group plant on Forest Street was quickly brought under control by Eau Claire firefighters. The fire was reported at 1:11 a.m., and firefighters arrive to find heavy smoke in a building. The fire in a machine had activated the building’s sprinkler system, which kept the fire under control until crews arrived. Firefighters had the fire under control in about 20 minutes. One plant worker was evaluated at the scene by paramedics.No damage estimate is available. The cause of the fire remains under investigation
Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Columbia, MO – Sprinklers suppress fire at rubber products manufacturer; Damage minimized, No injuries February 8, 2016 viking210 The Columbia Fire Department responded to a structure fire at Gates Rubber Corporation Saturday morning at about 10:30. When crews got to the scene, they found that the fire had already been put out by the sprinkler system. Fire officials say the fire was contained to a small area and didn’t cause much damage. Nobody was injured in the fire. The assistant fire marshal was able to determine that the fire was caused by friction on some hand tools. He believes the damages are about $2,000.
Food Processing, Manufacturing Hickman, CA – Sprinklers activate to help stop fire originating in almond roaster February 5, 2016 viking210 Employees at the Rolling Hills Nut Co. plant south of Hickman were able to extinguish a fire that began on an almond roaster early Wednesday. At about 2:15 a.m., crews from the Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District and Ceres and Modesto fire departments responded to a report of a structure fire at the plant on the 3000 block of Montpelier Road. The report was of almonds on fire in a warehouse. First crews on the scene saw light smoke from a warehouse. An almond roaster had been on fire but was extinguished by employees. The sprinkler system also had activated as it should, said Stanislaus Consolidated Battalion Chief Eric DeHart. Firefighters checked and confirmed that the fire was out, and remained on the scene to help clear smoke, he said.
Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill Burlington, IA – Sprinkler system credited with containing fire at printing company February 5, 2016 viking210 Firefighters responded to a fire at Doran & Ward Printing Company, located at 2811 Mt. Pleasant St. on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. The fire reportedly started in an office. It activated a sprinkler head, which fire officials say kept the fire from spreading. Employees evacuated the building and firefighters used a fire extinguisher to put out the remaining flames. The fire was out by 3:51 a.m. The investigation revealed that the fire started in a light fixture in a small office located in the plant, causing melting plastic to drop down onto a desk and chair. Damage was contained to the office area and is estimated to be less than $4,000. Employees returned to work a short time later.
Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Salina, KS – Compressor fire at cabinet manufacturer put out by sprinkler system February 4, 2016 viking210 A fire in the compressor room at Crestwood caused employees to be evacuated Monday morning and shut down the cabinet-making plant for half the day.Capt. Roger Soldan said firefighters with Rural Fire Department No. 2 responded to the call about 9:10 a.m. at the plant at 601 E. Water Well. Crestwood president Mike Junk said the bearings in the motor of one of three air compressors went out, sparking the fire, which was put out right away by an automatic sprinkler system. Junk said firefighters came through to check for flames and hot spots, and the electricity was shut off while the system was assessed for damage. Junk said the plant was back up and running Monday afternoon, with just the other two air compressors. He said parts have been ordered to repair the third compressor
Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill Lincoln, ME – Sprinklers help contain fire at Lincoln Wood Shavings Mill January 29, 2016 viking210 A fire broke out at LMJ Enterprises in Lincoln around 6 a.m. The mill, located in the former Haskell Lumber facility on Main Street, makes wood shavings for animal bedding. There was extensive heat and water damage inside the building, according to fire fighters. Authorities tell TV-5 the fire was burning for several hours before they arrived. The building’s sprinkler system kept the flames from 15doing more damage. The fire is not considered suspicious and the Fire Marshal’s office has been called in to determine a cause.
