According to the Lexington Fire Department, crews responded to the call around 9:17 p.m. Saturday.
The department says when they arrived everyone had evacuated from the building…and they were able to put out the fire with the help of the buildings sprinkler system.
The Fire Department says one girl did suffer minor injuries but was treated at the scene.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The first units to arrive at the YMCA fire were from the Pleasant Township and Greenfield Township fire departments, Schultz said.
“Our firefighters were already on their way to the Second Street fire, and when the call came through for the Y, mutual aid units took care of that one. It appears a commercial dryer caught fire at the Y, and luckily the sprinkler system helped contain the fire to the laundry room until mutual aid could arrive,” Schultz said. “Because the building’s rotunda is connected to the laundry room, there was smoke damage to the first and second floors, and some water damage due to the sprinkler system’s activation.”
He added there were no injuries reported, and the YMCA was closed Wednesday. Cole Reinschell, administrative director with the YMCA, said the building will likely be closed Thursday, and any updates will be posted on the organization’s Facebook page.
“First and foremost, I’m thankful that everyone is okay, the health and safety of our staff and patrons are our number one priority. The Sixth Avenue facility will be closed Thursday, but our River Valley campus will be open, and we will have childcare available,” Reinschell said.
He said the fire was caused by a dryer malfunction. Staff reported a burning smell and responded quickly, even using a fire extinguisher. Reinschell said he was proud of the staff for reacting quickly and evacuating clients from the building.
“I just want to say over the past year with COVID-19, we’ve overcome a lot of adversity. I wanted to thank all the firefighters that reported and helped us, and our members and staff for their work today,” he said.
He thanked the Tree Church for offering shelter to YMCA members and childcare program during the evacuation.
Reinschell added the YMCA would appreciate any charitable donations from the community. Checks should be made payable to the Robert K. Fox Family YMCA, address 465 W Sixth Ave, Lancaster, OH, 43130. Questions can be directed to Reinschell: contact him at 740-654-0616, extension 245.
Along with the Greenfield and Pleasant townships’ fire departments, firefighters from Hocking Township, Bloom Township and Amanda Township fire departments also responded. The fire was contained by about 9:30, Schultz said.
“We’re grateful for the assistance from everyone. Mutual aid is critical, and, today definitely proves that, every community should help one another. We were able to handle both fires with the assistance of every fire department that arrived,” Schultz said. “We appreciate that they could come to the city to help.”
At the time of the fire, approximately 50 customers and employees were in the building when the fire started. Although the fire started in the un-occupied laundry room, they were able to escape unharmed when the alarm sounded.
The building’s fire sprinkler system was installed in 2018 by Interactive Fire Control Inc and inspected by MCESD 8 Fire Inspectors working hand in hand with the Montgomery County Fire Marshal’s Office. The MCFMO and MCESD #8 work together under an inter-local agreement to enforce the County Fire Code and insure the safety of residents and visitors.
The Montgomery County Commissioner’s Court first adopted a County-wide Fire Code in 2008 after a series of commercial fires damaged or destroyed several businesses in our community. Since that time, MCFMO personnel have reviewed building plans on over 100 million square feet of new construction projects and along with our partners, conduct thousands of inspections annually.
Firefighters said they were dispatched to the gym around 7:20 a.m. for a fire alarm.
A caller said there was a fire in the electrical room, and the call was upgraded to a commercial structure fire.
First arriving units found light smoke and an activated sprinkler head in the electrical room.
Crews said the sprinkler extinguished the fire.
According to the department, the fire was likely caused by an electrical appliance failing, overheating and igniting.
There were no injuries reported.
The gym will be closed while the electrical equipment is replaced.
Smoke from a fire filled the ice arena next to Red Wing High School, authorities said.
An alarm sounded about 3:25 p.m. Wednesday at Prairie Island Arena, and emergency dispatch was soon alert to a fire in the refrigeration room of the School District-owned facility, according to Assistant Fire Chief Mike Warner.
Firefighters soon arrived to the home rink for the high school’s boys and girls teams and had the fire under control within 15 minutes, Warner said. The building’s sprinkler system spewed water and helped contain the flames to its originating location, he added.
Smoke from a fire filled the ice arena next to Red Wing High School, authorities said.
An alarm sounded about 3:25 p.m. Wednesday at Prairie Island Arena, and emergency dispatch was soon alert to a fire in the refrigeration room of the School District-owned facility, according to Assistant Fire Chief Mike Warner.
Firefighters soon arrived to the home rink for the high school’s boys and girls teams and had the fire under control within 15 minutes, Warner said. The building’s sprinkler system spewed water and helped contain the flames to its originating location, he added.
Even so, “smoke was found throughout the building,” Warner said.
There were no injuries reported, and what ignited the fire remains under investigation.
District Superintendent Karsten Anderson said that an electrical motor that is part of the refrigeration system caught fire. Anderson said she hopes repairs can be started as soon as possible.
Warner said that the quick response by his department and the brief time the fire burned showed “the importance on maintaining a working sprinkler system and having a monitored fire alarm system.”