Category Archives: Apartment Building

Apartment Building, Residential

Green Bay, WI – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire at large apartment building

A fire in a large apartment building was stopped in its tracks by the sprinkler system Monday night.  The Green Bay Metro Fire Department blames careless use of smoking materials for a fire inside a closet in one of the apartments of Woodland Park on University Avenue. The sprinkler system activated and alarms went off just before 6:30 p.m. When firefighters arrived, they found the fire was already extinguished.  Woodland Park has 80 apartments, according to its website.  Neighbors were allowed back in their apartments after about 45 minutes.  The person living in the apartment, along with two cats, are staying with friends across the hall, GBMFD said.

Apartment Building, Residential

Humble, TX – (No Media Coverage) Apartment kitchen fire extinguished by single sprinkler

**NO MEDIA COVERAGE – Fire Department Reported ** On Sunday February 25, 2018 investigators reported a sprinkler save at 4475 Wilson RD APT #7306. The tenant was heating up grease to fry food on the electric stove top when the fire occurred. The apartment suffered fire damage to the microwave and kitchen cabinet of each side of it. A single sprinkler head activated and extinguished the fire prior to fire department arrival.

Total Property Damage from Fire/Sprinkler Activation: $7,000
Total Property Value: $306,000

Apartment Building, Residential

Rochester, MN – Apartment kitchen fire is put out by sprinkler system; No injuries

The Rochester Fire Department says it was called to Oak Ridge Apartments on North Broadway around 5:22 pm Friday and found fire alarms sounding and light smoke coming from a second floor unit. The flames were put out by a sprinkler head in the apartment before firefighters arrived, but crews cleared out the smoke with ventilation fans and cleaned up the water to prevent any more damage.  No one was injured but heat and flames damaged kitchen cabinets, an exhaust hood, and a stove top.  The fire is being blamed on combustible material near the stovetop and is being called an accident.

Apartment Building, Residential

McKinney, TX – Apartment kitchen fire stopped by automatic sprinkler system

A man fell asleep shortly after starting to heat grease in a pan on last Friday. He woke up to a fire and attempted to throw the flaming pan into the sink, but missed. Fortunately, the Treymore in McKinney Apartments on Wilson Creek Parkway have fire sprinklers in the units. The McKinney Fire Department arrived to find the fire sprinkler activation had extinguished the flames.  “This could have been much worse. Grease fires can spread quickly. It is important to stay alert when you turn a stove or oven on,” said Chief Mike Smith, McKinney Fire Marshal.

Apartment Building, Residential

Albert Lea, MN – Apartment fire limited with help from sprinkler system; No injuries reported

A fire Friday night at St. John’s Lutheran Community’s Knutson Place Apartments reportedly caused $35,000 in damage. The fire caused a temporary evacuation of residents to other parts of the facility not impacted by the fire. Third-floor residents were taken to the first floor dining room in the nursing home while first responders were on scene. Upon arriving shortly at about 8 p.m. to the apartments, at 901 Luther Place, Albert Lea firefighters and police reportedly found light smoke in a third floor hallway. The fire was contained to one apartment, according to a city press release. The fire reportedly spread to nearby furniture, which activated the sprinkler system and minimized damage to the building.

St. John’s Administrator and CEO Scot Spates said most of the damage includes burnt and wet drywall and carpet and floor damage. Spates credited the facility’s sprinkler system and first responders for limiting the damage from the fire. No injuries were reported. The fire was caused by a lampshade coming into contact with a light bulb and igniting, according to the release. The building was turned back to facility staff, and first responders cleared the scene at 9:30 p.m. Spates said two tenants have not been able to return to their apartments. One lived where the fire alarm alerted first responders to the fire, while the second tenant lived below the apartment. They are living in empty on-site apartments while the two rooms are remodeled. Residential and commercial services firm ServiceMaster assisted on scene following the fire. An insurance adjuster is expected to evaluate the facility today.

Apartment Building, Residential

Houston, TX – (No Media Coverage) Sprinkler system controls apartment fire caused by unattended incense burning

**NO MEDIA COVERAGE – Fire Department Reported** On Friday 02/23/2018, investigators responded to the Lexington at Champions Apartments in reference to an apartment fire. Tenants left incense burning, unattended, and it caught clothing on the floor on fire. The fire occurred on the 3rd floor of the apartment, in the tenants bedroom. One sprinkler head in the bedroom activated and kept the fire from spreading.

Apartment Building, Residential

Cypress, TX – (No Media Coverage) Kitchen grease fire extinguished by single automatic fire sprinkler

**NO MEDIA COVERAGE – Fire Department Reported** On Sunday February 18, 2018, Cypress Creek Fire Department responded to a fire alarm at 11111 Grant Road. Engine 21 arrived on location at Building 11 with active alarm. Units were told there had been a fire in unit 1128. Crew investigated and found a extinguished grease fire in the kitchen sink. A single sprinkler head activated and extinguished the fire.  PIO spoke with the tenant and he advised he was heating up grease and walked away to use the restroom. He came back out and the pot was smoking. He picked up the pot and carried it to the sink. During the moving of the pot it started to flame up so he sat it in the sink and turned the water on. The pot flared up and shortly after, the sprinkler activated and put the fire out. Property and contents lost valued at $10,000. Total property value, $260,000.

Apartment Building, Residential, Residential High Rise

New Brunswick, NJ – Fire on 11th floor of luxury high rise apartment building put out with help from sprinkler system

City officials say no one was injured in a kitchen fire, ignited in an apartment at The Aspire, 135 Somerset St., on February 22. The emergency call came in at 3:05 p.m., with firefighters arriving on the scene within three minutes. The fire, on the eleventh floor of the luxury building, was quickly knocked down and firefighters were able to clear the scene by 5 p.m., said city spokesperson Jennifer Bradshaw. Firefighters believe the fire was caused by a cooking accident. The building sprinkler system activated and helped extinguish the flames. While there were fortunately no injuries, the apartment sustained water damage.  A second alarm was called because the blaze was in a 17-story high rise, with support coming from Edison, Sayreville, East Franklin, North Brunswick and East Brunswick fire departments.  The Aspire, built by Boraie Development in New Brunswick, opened in 2015. It is steps from the New Brunswick Train Station and across the street from the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, Rutgers Medical School and the Rutgers University campus.  It includes 238 studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments.

Apartment Building, Residential

St. Charles, IL – Kitchen fire in downtown apartment building contained by sprinkler system

Firefighters in St. Charles came to the rescue of a woman who became trapped in a downtown apartment Thursday night after a blaze broke out in her kitchen, fire officials said. Fire crews were called to Carroll Tower at about 10:39 p.m. after a fire alarm went off in the six-story complex. Firefighters found a woman stuck inside the second-floor apartment unit where the blaze started.

Firefighters were able to get the woman out of her apartment and she was taken to Delnor Hospital in Geneva with injuries that are not considered life-threatening, according to a news release from the St. Charles Fire Department. No one else was injured in the blaze.

Some residents of Carroll Towers, which is located along the Fox River at 200 N. 2nd Street, were evacuated to the lobby and were “sheltered in place” as firefighters worked to put out the fire. A sprinkler system is credited with keeping a blaze “in check in the kitchen” and firefighters quickly extinguished the fire within 15 minutes. Still, there was significant smoke throughout the second floor. re crews remained on scene until about 12:15 p.m., assisting residents from the remaining second-floor units back to their apartments, according to the news release.

The fire was contained to the kitchen of the apartment where the fire originated. The cause of the fire is attributed to combustible materials being left on a stove top and is considered accidental. The blaze caused an estimated $50,000 in damage.

The St. Charles Fire Department was assisted at the scene by the Geneva, Batavia and Elburn fire department. The North Aurora Fire Department changed quarters to assist with any additional incidents while St. Charles units were operating at the fire.

Apartment Building, Hospital/Medical Clinic, Residential

Newport News, VA – Trash chute fire in multi-use residential building extinguished by sprinkler system

Newport News multi-purpose building was evacuated Thursday afternoon after a fire started in a trash chute, an official said. Firefighters responded to a report of an alarm activation reporting smoke inside the building in the 200 block of Nat Turner Blvd. shortly before 3 p.m., Battalion Chief Matthew Haraburda said at the scene. The building has a medical facility on the first floor with apartments above it, he said. There, they found that fire had started in the chute, but it was extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system, he said. Firefighters checked to make sure the fire had not spread and cleared smoke from the building, he said. No injuries were reported.

Haraburda said it was a good thing the building’s alarm system and sprinklers were working properly. It helped prevent the fire from spreading and ensure people inside got out safely. “When we got here, everybody had evacuated the building, which was good for us,” he said.