Category Archives: Other Business

Athletic Club/Sports Facility, Other Business

Kennewick, WA – Sprinkler system contains fire at Toyota Town Center

Kennewick Fire Chief Chad Michael credits the sprinkler system for containing a fire at the Toyota Town Center Friday. 

The fire started in one of the HVAC units in the basement of the facility at 7000 West Grandbridge Boulevard, prompting an evacuation of the center on September 22, 2023. 

The building was evacuated, and firefighters entered the building to find the rapid activation of the sprinkler system confined the fire to the unit.

Crews shut down the sprinkler system to minimize water damage and the facility was able to reopen a short time after the incident. 

Fire Chief Michael says the incident is an excellent example of the important role sprinklers play in both the protection of life and property.  

According to the National Fire Protection Association, “From 2015 to 2019, sprinklers operated in 92 percent of fires large enough to activate sprinklers and were effective at controlling the fire in 96 percent of the incidents in which they operated.”  

Office Building, Other Business

Houston, TX – Sprinkler system activated for office fire; No injuries reported

Firefighters arrived on scene to find heavy smoke coming from a 4-story office building and upgraded the response. They made an attack and checked for extension, clearing the stairwells, and opening the roof hatch. The sprinkler system had controlled and extinguished a drink cooler that had overheated and caught fire. Crews controlled the sprinkler system and ventilated the smoke from the structure. The building was turned over to the building maintenance staff on site. 60 personnel were dispatched to this incident, including firefighters from Stations 2, 28, 68, 83, 10, 60, 69, 73, 17, 57 and Rehab 8.

 

Other Business, Place of Worship

Chattanooga, TN – Sprinkler system extinguishes arson fire at Chattanooga Masonic Center

The Chattanooga Fire and Chattanooga Police are investigating an incident at the Chattanooga Masonic Center involving arson and vandalism early Monday morning.

Firefighters responded to the Masonic Lodge at 551 W. 21st Street on a fire alarm activation at 2:11 a.m.

When CFD personnel arrived on scene, they found a fire on the left front exterior of the building which was quickly extinguished. The front doors were also open and as crews made entry, they found another small fire inside the structure which had activated the sprinkler system. The sprinklers effectively extinguished the interior fire.

Along with fire and water damage, there was also damage to the building from vandalism.

There is an active and ongoing investigation into what happened at this location.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Bolingbrook, IL – Sprinkler system contains fire at Party City store

A fire reported at Party City on Sunday was contained by the fire sprinkler system of the building, the Bolingbrook Fire Department said.

The department responded at 3:20 p.m. to the store at 257 N. Weber Road, and found a fire in a display shelving unit inside the store.

The department said the sprinkler system had contained the fire, and firefighters were able to extinguish flames quickly. Crews began to salvage and conserve the unaffected property inside the building, and worked to clear the smoke from the building and neighboring units.

Members of the Bolingbrook Fire Department, trained in fire investigations, began to survey the scene, the department said. At this time, the incident is still under investigation.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Owatonna, MN – Sprinkler system controls fire at business; No injuries reported

Authorities are investigating a fire at a business in Owatonna.

It happened just before 11:30 p.m. Tuesday at Nelson Decorating Center, located at 121 Oakdale Street SW.

According to the Owatonna Fire Department (OFD), the sprinkler system at the business controlled the blaze until crews arrived to put out the remaining flames.

Firefighters stayed on scene for roughly two hours to help ventilate the building.

The cause of the fire is unknown. Damages are estimated at $350,000.

The neighboring business, Sherwin Williams, had minor smoke and water damage.

OFD said no one was hurt.

“Having a working sprinkler system helped prevent more extensive damage to the business,” said Ed Hoffman, the Owatonna Fire Chief. “This is a great reminder for other businesses that have sprinkler and fire alarm systems to have them inspected regularly to ensure they are working properly.”

The Owatonna Police Department and the Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office assisted OFD at the scene.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Palm Desert, CA – Sprinkler system activated for fire in commercial building; No injuries reported

A fire in a one-story commercial building in Palm Desert Tuesday evening was extinguished with no reports of injuries.

Firefighters responded to the 77700 block of Flora Road, near Las Montanas Road, around 8:10 p.m. to a report regarding light smoke coming from a one-story commercial building, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.

Firefighters discovered two golf carts fully engulfed in flames as they approached the inside of the building.

The building’s sprinkler system assisted in holding back the fire.

The fire was contained around 8:54 p.m. Firefighters remained on the scene for clean-up and to ensure all hot spots were extinguished.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Great Falls, MT – Sprinkler system held fire at laundry mat in check

UPDATE 5 PM: Great Falls Fire Rescue (GFFR) released more information in relation to the National Laundry Fire on Monday night. 

After GFFR arrived on scene, firefighters noticed smoke coming from the roof of the building.

Firefighters entered the building through a door on the East side of the building and were met with heavy smoke and no visibility.

When entry was made into the building, firefighters encountered two males in the building who were National Laundry employees attempting to put the fire out.

The employees had been notified of the alarm activation by the fire alarm monitoring company.

Both employees were escorted out of the building and assessed by GFES, but both employees refused any further medical care on completion of the medical assessment.

After firefighters reentered the building, they discovered the fire was being held in check by the building’s sprinkler system.

Even with the sprinkler system keeping the fire in check, firefighters did have a tough time getting the fire knocked down, but they were able to get it fully under control.

The cause of the fire has been determined to be the spontaneous combustion of mop heads. There are numerous fires that have been documented as being caused by the spontaneous combustion of mop heads at laundry facilities, as noted in Spontaneous Ignition Fires in Laundries by Jim Everitt.

Fire damage in National Laundry was limited by the presence of the fire sprinkler system. Without this system in place, the entire complex could have been lost.

As of now, total damages to National Laundry have not been determined, and they are working to get the business reopened.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Oakville, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire at community center

The Oakville Fire Department says no injuries were reported following a fire at the Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre on Monday, July 17.

At around 8:30 p.m., the 2302 Bridge Rd. facility was evacuated due to a small fire in one of the board rooms.

“We believe there were items placed on top of a charging station that kind of smothered and caused something to overheat creating a small fire,” said Oakville Fire Chief Paul Boissonneault.

“The fire was extinguished by the sprinkler system and then our crews removed the remanent components when they arrived.”

The fire chief said firefighters also ventilated the building to get rid of the smell of burnt plastic.

The community centre was able to open its doors on Tuesday as per usual.

Damage to the boardroom is said to be minimal.

“The sprinklers certainly did their job,” said Boissonneault.

Other Business, Place of Worship

Columbia, MO – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire at church; No injuries reported

The Columbia Fire Department responded to a fire at Missouri United Methodist Church early Monday morning.

According to a release from the fire department, at 4:03 am crews were called to Missouri United Methodist Church on Ninth Street where they found a large amount of smoke in the multipurpose area of the building and the automatic fire sprinkler system in the building was already activated.

Fire crews initiated search and rescue operations and began ventilation operations to clear the structure of smoke and ensured the fire was contained.

The fire sprinkler system fully extinguished the fire and no injuries were reported.

Columbia fire marshals determined the fire to have originated on the stage and was caused by a piece of sound equipment.

Everything was brought under control within thirty minutes.

Fire crews remained on the scene until mid-morning to ensure there were no areas of hidden fire remaining and to remove as much smoke and water as possible from the building.

Initial damage was estimated at $200,000.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Menasha, WI – Sprinkler system activated for trash fire

Crews with the Neenah-Menasha Fire Rescue (NMFR) responded to the 1800 block of Novak Drive in Menasha for a report of a structure fire on Monday.

According to Assistant Chief Adam Dorn, firefighters arrived on the scene around 11:30 a.m. and found a trash pile on fire outside of the building and smoke inside the building.

Firefighters say that the building’s sprinkler system worked in containing the fire, with one sprinkler head activated. Firefighters quickly extinguished the trash that caught fire outside the building.

Additional crews arrived and confirmed that the fire did not extend to any other portions of the building or equipment inside. After the fire was put out, the sprinkler system was shut down, and officials are working on restoring the system.

NMFR says the fire appears to be accidental in nature, but investigators have been unable to determine a cause at this time.

Local 5 News will update this should any additional information become available.

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