Five people were also escorted from the basement of the building at 901 E. 31st St., said Margaret Stewart of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Firefighters dispatched at 5:10 a.m. to 901 E. 31st St. had the fire out within 26 minutes of their arrival, Stewart said.
No injuries were reported and a cause of the fire was under investigation.
A blaze at the Beer Depot was reported at 12:41 AM, both by alarms in the building and passersby who saw thick smoke billowing out the front and rear of the building.
No one was inside the building at the time and firefighters were able to bring the fire under control.
A sprinkler system helped to keep it from spreading to the adjacent Lane’s Liquor Store, although that building did suffer smoke damage.
Fire officials say they believe they have narrowed down the cause, which does not appear to be suspicious, but need to await a visit tomorrow by investigators from the News State Department of Ag and Markets, before officially releasing a cause.
A fire sprinkler system prevented major fire damage at a Moses Lake business Thursday night.
About 11 p.m. the Moses Lake Fire Department responded to a fire alarm at the Central Machinery sales building. When firefighters arrived they found smoke coming from the building and were able to hear the water flow alarm from the fire sprinkler system.
“The first arriving engine was tasked with pumping in to the fire sprinkler system to increase water flow for fire suppression while firefighters gained entry into the building for fire attack. Once inside the building firefighters discovered a commercial vehicle with fire inside the cab and engine compartment,” reads a press release from the MLFD. “The fire had been contained to the vehicle through the proper operation of the fire sprinkler system. Two sprinkler heads opened and suppressed the fire until firefighters could access the seat of the fire and fully extinguish it using fire hose hand lines.”
A total of two engines, one squad car, one medical unit, one ladder truck, two command units, the city’s fire marshal and 10 personnel responded to the scene. Through their investigation the MLFD traced the origin of the fire back to a “wiring bundle” in the battery box compartment of the commercial vehicle. The MLFD says the fire spread from the battery box, to the cab and then to the engine compartment.
Crews spent Thursday morning and most of the evening gutting ABLE Dental, located in the Dona Maria Plaza on North Tenaya Way.
Also, because the fire was so intense, the next door business of Africa Sanchez Attorney’s office was damaged by water.
Receptionist Jhonnathan Lopez told 13 Action News that several boxes were drenched, and the smell of smoke permeated the air, forcing them to close the office for at least a day.
“It’s the inconvenience, you know?” Lopez said. “We had a full calendar of appointments today, and we had to reschedule everyone.”
Tim Szymanski, with Las Vegas Fire and Rescue, said the fire burned so hot and so fast that the flames activated several ceiling sprinklers when naturally occurring fires usually activate just two.
“This is a complex fire here,” Szymanski said.
He said sprinklers activate when temperatures reach between 155 and 165 degrees, and with so many activating at the same time it was immediately suspicious.
“It would be similar to someone maybe throwing a match into a barbecue,” Szymanski said. “You get that big poof.”
Szymanski also said that without the sprinkler system, a third of the complex likely would have burned to the ground.
Property owner Nezira Johnson swore by the sprinkler system that may have saved her a lot of work rebuilding.
“It saved our building,” Johnson said. “I think it would have burned down at least half.”
She estimated her repair bill would reach six figures, but was confident that her insurance would cover the majority of the cost.
Officials say an 18-wheeler crashed into a building Tuesday night causing a fire.
According to authorities, the crash happened around 11:40 p.m. at the Alabama Robotics Technology Park in Tanner near the Calhoun Community College campus on US 31. Fire crews said the woman driving the 18-wheeler was heading northbound and lost control of her vehicle. The truck skidded across the road and ended up running into the building causing a fire to erupt.
The driver was able to get out of the vehicle with only minor injuries.
Crews were able to put the fire out safely but the building and vehicle did receive damage.
What caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle has not been released.
Disaster recovery services are currently on hold due to an order from officials not to enter the building.
The original architect for the building will be on site Thursday, May 23rd, to inspect the facility. A structural engineer will inspect the facility on Friday, May 24th.
The timeline for repairs is pending reports from both the architect and the structural engineer.
It will take approximately two weeks for the disaster recovery process to be completed once officials allow staff back into the structure.
FAME Classes are currently suspended until further notice. AIDT will send out a notice with a timeline for classes to resume when the information becomes available.
The Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department was called at 11:23 a.m. Monday to Crystal Lake Auto Body, 7218 North Virginia Road, for a report of a structure fire.
The first fire crew arrived on scene in four minutes and reported a working fire with smoke coming from the roof, fire officials said. The occupants of the building were able to evacuate before the fire department arrived.
An offensive attack strategy was used and crews entered into the building with a hose line while another hose line was deployed to the roof to extinguish the fire. The building had working fire alarms that activated and a working sprinkler system that activated, containing the fire from spreading elsewhere in the building.
There were no injuries to the occupants or firefighters. The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was utilized, bringing firefighters from Algonquin, Barrington-Countryside, Carpentersville, Cary, Huntley, Marengo, McHenry, Nunda Rural, West Dundee and Wonder Lake to assist.
The fire was deemed under control around 25 minutes later at 11:48 a.m. Damage was estimated at $35,000.
The owners of AAMCO Crystal Lake, which shares the building with Crystal Lake Auto Body, posted on Facebook after the fire.
“We at AAMCO & Hankook Tire were fortunate today. The tenant in the rear of our building, Crystal Lake Auto Body, had a fire in their paint booth. The Crystal Lake Fire Department was awesome. They seemed to get there right after the sprinklers went off,” the owners said.
“AAMCO had no damage in its building, and AAMCO is open for business. Thank you all who have asked,” the owners added.
Two Tucker Street businesses were affected by fire early Thursday morning, April 11.
No one was in the building during the fire and no injuries were reported.
The businesses expect to reopen within a few days, once electricity and water are restored.
Burlington police, Alamance County EMS and Duke Energy responded to the fire as well.
** Fire Department Reported – No Media Coverage ** The Lake Zurich Fire Department responded to the 700 block of South Rand Road in Lake Zurich for an activated fire alarm. The first fire department units arrived on the scene in under five minutes and found moderate smoke inside the building which was closed at the time of the alarm. The engine company investigating the cause of the smoke found a laundry bin smoldering in the kitchen area. They extinguished the fire with assistance from an activated sprinkler head from the installed automatic fire sprinkler system. Fire crews then conducted salvage, overhaul operations, and began a preliminary cause and origin investigation. The fire was accidental and caused by spontaneous combustion of oily rags in the kitchen area. There was a preliminary damage estimate of $500 and well over $1,000,000 in property and contents saved.
There were no reports of any firefighter injuries. Lake Zurich received assistance from the Lake Zurich Police Department with traffic control. The Lake Zurich Fire Department would like to remind residents to install working smoke detectors, make an escape plan and “practice” it, and consider installing an automatic fire-sprinkler system. Fire-related safety information is located on our Facebook page or by calling the Fire Prevention Bureau at (847) 540-5073.
