Category Archives: Apartment Building

Apartment Building, Residential

Tuscon, AZ – Two sprinkler heads activated to put out fire at apartment; No injuries reported

Crews responded to an apartment Thursday afternoon in central Tucson.

Tucson Fire Department units were dispatched to Haskell Drive and Grant Road.

TFD responded to an apartment fire near Haskell Dr and Grant Rd on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019.

Officials say water was coming from an apartment door on the second floor. As firefighters made their way inside, they found that two sprinkler heads had activated inside the apartment – putting out a bulk of the fire. The fire was under control minutes later, TFD says.

The resident was not home at the time of the incident. No injuries were reported.

Fire officials say the cause and origin of the fire are under investigation.

Apartment Building, Residential

Everett, WA – Fire sprinkler at apartment does its job, extinguishes unattended cooking fire; No injuries reported

Saturday night, shortly before 10:30 p.m., firefighters were dispatched to the Library Place Apartments, located at 2720 Hoyt Avenue, for a fire alarm that monitors the building’s fire sprinkler system. As crews investigated the source, they found light smoke and a significant amount of water on the third floor caused by a stovetop fire from unattended cooking in one of the units.

The fire sprinklers in the affected apartment did their job and controlled the stovetop fire, containing the fire to the kitchen area and preventing it from spreading to the rest of the unit or to other units in the building. Fire damage was limited to the involved apartment’s kitchen area. At the time of the call, water had flowed through the affected apartment, into the third-floor hallway, and into the elevator shafts, causing the elevators to be shut down until an elevator technician inspects them for safe operation.

There were no injuries in this fire. The Red Cross was called to assist one adult male who was displaced by the fire.

This fire is a good reminder that cooking fires are the number one cause of home fires and home injuries. The leading cause of fires in the kitchen is unattended cooking. According to the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA), almost two-thirds of home cooking fires start on ranges or cooktops. Thanksgiving is the peak day for home cooking fires, followed by Christmas Day and Christmas Eve. 

Apartment Building, Residential

Lowell, MA – Ninth-floor apartment fire doused by fire sprinkler; No injuries reported

A small fire in a ninth-floor apartment inside the River Place Towers on Thursday evening activated a sprinkler head that helped douse the fire, but which also sent water cascading down through the building to as far as the fourth floor, according to firefighters.

Deputy Chief John Dowling said crews were called to the towering building about 4:30 p.m., and discovered there was a small fire in a bedroom on the ninth floor. The cause of that blaze remains under investigation.

The blaze activated a spinkler head, which sent water flowing from the ninth floor apartment all the way down to the fourth floor, Dowling said.

Firefighters spent about an hour at the scene, with much of that time sent helping residents cover their furniture and other valuables with salvage covers to protect them from water damage.

There were no reported injuries.

Apartment Building, Residential

Roanoke, VA – Fire caused by unattended burning incense extinguished by apartment fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

A small fire temporarily displaced several residents of the Melrose Towers building Tuesday, according to Roanoke Fire-EMS.

The fire, accidentally kindled by unattended burning incense, was quickly extinguished by the complex’s sprinkler system.

No injuries or extensive property damage were reported. Several apartments did sustain water damage. Those tenants were relocated by apartment management, officials said.

The fire was reported just before 5 p.m. Tuesday.

Apartment Building, Residential

Conroe, TX – (no media coverage) Apartment fire extinguished by fire sprinkler prior to arrival of fire department

The City of Conroe Fire Department was notified of an apartment fire at 1840 Longmire Rd (The Landings of Conroe) at approximately 08:25 a.m. on December 3, 2019.

Conroe Firefighters arrived at approximately 08:30 a.m. and discovered an extinguished fire in an upstairs apartment. A single fire sprinkler head had activated and extinguished a stove top grease fire. There were no reported injuries to firefighters or other occupants of the building. Thanks to the activation of the fire sprinkler, there was minimal fire or smoke damage. Water damage was limited to the affected apartment and the apartment immediately below. Fire crews worked to reduce property damage by turning off the fire sprinkler and removing as much water as possible.

A fire investigation has been completed by the City of Conroe Fire Marshal’s Office and the fire has been classified as accidental in nature. The Conroe Fire Department would like to remind residents that a leading cause of home fires is unattended cooking.

This incident is an excellent example of the vital role a properly installed and maintained automatic fire sprinkler system can play in saving lives and reducing property damage. It is likely that the automatic fire sprinkler system saved hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage and property loss to the building’s owners and occupants.

Automatic fire sprinkler systems have over 100 years of proven performance protecting life and property.

Apartment Building, Residential

Victoria, TX – Single fire sprinkler keeps apartment fire contained to one room; No injuries reported

The Victoria Fire Department responded to the report of a fire alarm at Oak Forest Apartments early Tuesday morning.  

The alarm sounded around 5 am, waking residents out of their sleep to evacuate the building.

VFD units found a single sprinkler head had activated and controlled a fire in the bedroom of one apartment, according to a statement from the City of Victoria. 

Firefighters extinguished the fire with a minimal amount of water, which further reduced the damage in the apartment building.

VFD personnel immediately worked to ventilate the apartment and turned off the sprinkler system to minimize water damage. 

Residents were able to re-enter their apartments around 6 a.m. No deaths or injuries have been reported. 

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

Apartment Building, Residential

Peoria, IL – Accidental apartment cooking fire put out by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Three apartment units are heavily damaged by water due to an accidental fire on Friday.

At approximately 6 p.m. firefighters responded to a structure fire at Woodsage Apartments located at 9012 N. Scrimshaw Dr. Once crews arrived on the scene, the fire was already put out due to the sprinkler system.

The fire started in apartment 303 caused by an occupant cooking on the stove. The fire extended to the microwave and cabinets.

Two other apartments below apartment 303 were also affected because of the sprinkler suppression system.

No injuries were reported.

Apartment Building, Residential

Greenville, NC – Dryer fire at student apartment complex contained by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

Authorities say a fire at a student living apartment complex began in a dryer.

Greenville Fire/ Rescue says the fire broke out at The Landing apartments just after 8 p.m. Monday night.

They say the sprinkler system helped reduce the amount of damage, but people in at least two apartment units are displaced.

No injuries were reported.

Apartment Building, Residential

Port Angeles, WA – Fire sprinkler prevents fire from spreading at apartment complex; No injuries reported

A fire sprinkler system prevented a fire from spreading at a Port Angeles apartment complex Sunday morning.

The Port Angeles Fire Department sent five firefighters to 1003 S. C St. for a reported structure fire at about 11:51 a.m. Sunday, according to a press release.

When they arrived they found light smoke showing from unit 3 and all residents had evacuated.

“The sprinkler system had been activated in the bedroom of unit 3 and extinguished the fire,” Lt. Bryant Kroh said in a news release. “Not only did this minimize the damage to the building, it prevented any further danger to tenants on site.”

Firefighters immediately worked to ventilate the apartment and turned off the sprinkler system to minimize water damage. The apartment sustained smoke, fire and water damage.

No one was injured in the incident.

The fire was caused by bedroom furnishings being too close to a baseboard heater, according to the press release.