Category Archives: Single Family Home

Residential, Single Family Home

Westminster, CO – Home fire sprinkler system extinguishes fire in three-story residence

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Westminster fire crews are giving to warning to all home owners after a three story home was saved by an in home fire sprinkler system. The fire department say a family heard their smoke alarm go off as well as ‘pop’ sound Friday evening. That pop was from their home sprinkler system being activated. The residents went to the garage to find a fire in a trash can. Before fire crews arrived, the sprinkler system has contained and extinguished the flames. 

Fire crews says this is a valuable demonstration on the effectiveness of home fire sprinkler systems. They say according to the National Fire Protection Association, in-home fire sprinklers can cut the risk of death in a fire by 80 percent. The risk of death in a home fire is cut in third with the use of a working smoke alarm. 

 “Because fire sprinklers react so quickly, they can dramatically reduce the heat, flames, and smoke produced in a fire,” says the NFPA. “Properly installed and maintained fire sprinklers help save lives.”  With home fire sprinkler systems only the sprinkler closest to the fire will activate, spraying water directly onto the fire.  The system may even extinguish a fire in less time than it would take for the fire department to arrive to the scene. 

NFPA has listed facts about home fire sprinklers at http://www.nfpa.org/public-education/by-topic/fire-and-life-safety-equipment/home-fire-sprinklers.

Residential, Single Family Home

Wilmington, NC – Habitat for Humanity home protected from extensive fire damage by residential sprinkler system

Wilmington Fire Department units responded to a house fire Saturday evening at 1406 Corbett Street.

According to Wilmington Fire Department PIO David Hines, the call came in around 7 p.m. It was caused by a grease fire that had flared up out of control. The fire then activated the residential fire sprinkler system that extinguished the fire. Once units arrived on scene, the fire had already been put out by the sprinkler system.

When the firefighters arrived on scene, they shut off the water to the house to stop the flow from the activated head and performed ventilation procedures to remove smoke from the resident.

The home where this fire occurred was a home that was built by Habitat for Humanity in 2011. Due to the residential sprinkler system in the home, fire and smoke damage was minimal, estimated at $350.00. The damages were contained to the area immediately surrounding the flare-up.

Hines said there were no injuries reported and the occupants of the home were not displaced. He said even with the occupants at home, these types of fires without sprinkler systems, normally result in much more damage and/or injuries.

Residential, Single Family Home

Bullhead City, AZ – Garage fire contained by residential sprinkler system

A Katherine Heights garage fire late Monday night was contained by a sprinkler system, the Bullhead City Fire Department said Tuesday. 

The alarm came in at about 10:40 p.m., department spokeswoman Lorrae Viles said. Crews were called to an address on Power Line Road. Viles said they found water flowing out of the garage, but no active fire.

Battalion Chief Craig Stephenson reported that it appeared that the fire had started in a small plastic trash can next to an old sofa.

The residence was equipped with an overhead sprinkler system that was activated and extinguished the fire. If the system had not been in place, Viles said, the blaze could have gotten out of control and caused considerable damage.

Residential, Single Family Home

El Granada, CA – Home sprinkler system assists firefighters in suppressing deck fire at home

A small fire damaged a deck and portion of an El Granada house Friday afternoon. Maresha Leeds, who lives in the home at Isabella Avenue and Columbus Street with her husband, was in her kitchen when the fire struck around 1 p.m. “I don’t know how it happened,” she said. “It seemed so spontaneous.”

Leeds said she was feeling uneasy around the time the fire started and didn’t know why. When her two golden retrievers started barking she thought something must be up. Then a ring of the doorbell clarified things. “My gardener and my UPS man told me my house was on fire,” Leeds said. The pair called 911 and Leeds worked on getting her dogs and her pet bird out of the house.

Coastside Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Ari Delay said at the scene that the cause of the fire was still under investigation, but appeared to originate from the second-level deck. He said flames were shooting up 10 to 20 feet when firefighters arrived and smoke from the blaze could be seen all the way from Half Moon Bay. Leeds said dog beds and dog houses were the only items on that second-level deck. She noted that her gardener reported smelling something like gasoline coming from the flames, but that she doesn’t store any gasoline in her home.

Delay said roughly 25 firefighters responded to the fire. A home sprinkler system assisted the firefighters with the dousing of the flames. Structural damage affected the deck and the neighboring room inside the home. A larger portion of the home suffered smoke and water damage, Delay said. Leeds indicated that she was fortunate the fire didn’t escalate into anything worse. “I’m so glad I was home,” she said.

Residential, Single Family Home

Riverside, CA – House fire caused by short-circuited microwave oven controlled by sprinkler system

A microwave oven short-circuited, igniting a nighttime kitchen fire that displaced four Riverside residents and caused $4,000 damage to their home, city fire officials say. The blaze was reported at 9:49 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 6, along the 6400 block of Logan Court, just north of Arlington Avenue and about a mile southwest of Riverside Muncipal Airport.

“The home’s sprinkler system kept the fire contained to the kitchen,” Battalion Chief Jeff DeLaurie said in a written statement. The crews of two fire engines and two ladder trucks fully extinguished the flames by 11:16 p.m. No one was hurt. American Red Cross volunteers were summoned to help shelter the residents until water and electrical service can be restored to the house.

Residential, Single Family Home

Turlock, CA – Residential garage fire kept from spreading to home by sprinkler system

The Turlock Fire Department responded to a fire early Sunday morning that was sparked by a malfunction in a refrigerator in the garage.  The residents were all able to get out of the home safely, thanks in part to their smoke alarm and residential sprinkler system, the fire department reported.

The fire was reported shortly before 5:30 a.m. Sunday at 1882 Moonbeam Way.  The first engine to arrive at the scene found smoke coming from the garage area of the two-story home.

Firefighters found the fire in the garage coming from a refrigeration unit. The fire was kept from spreading to the house by the residential fire sprinkler system. Turlock firefighters went to work, stretching fire hose, ventilating the home, extinguishing the fire, and performing a search to ensure the home was clear of any other occupants or pets.

“Quick extinguishment prevented thousands of dollars worth of damage to the home,” said Turlock Fire Chief Robert Talloni.  The fire spread to some nearby storage items and a vehicle parked inside the garage.

Turlock Fire responded with two chief officers and four Engine companies. Turlock Rural and Ceres Fire Department provided city coverage during the fire.

The fire department said the event was a good example of the benefits of having a working smoke alarm. “The residential sprinkler system and working smoke detectors were instrumental in giving the family time to safely escape the home,” the fire department stated in a news release.

Residential, Single Family Home, Uncategorized

Rancho Cucamonga, CA – (NO MEDIA COVERAGE) Single sprinkler activates to extinguish residential fire

*** NO MEDIA COVERAGE — FIRE DEPARTMENT REPORTED ** On August 5, 2016 at 3:20 p.m. Rancho Cucamonga (CA) Medic Engine 174 and Medic Truck 174 were dispatched with automatic aid resources to a reported residential structure fire in a two story single family detached home. The first arriving unit reported that a small fire had been extinguished by the activation of a single residential sprinkler. The fire was confined to the contents originally ignited. Fire, smoke, and water damage was minimal. Medic Engine 174 and Investigator 2150 shut down the sprinkler system, replaced the activated head with a new head from the spare sprinkler box, and recharged the fire sprinkler system. The Fire Inspector for the area followed up with the residents and coordinated an inspection with the Building Inspector.

Residential, Single Family Home

Battle Creek, MI – Early morning arson fire in home is extinguished by sprinkler system

Battle Creek firefighters and Battle Creek police are investigating a break-in and arson at a home. Firefighters were called to 141 Green St. at 6:21 a.m. Wednesday, according to Fire Marshal Quincy Jones. Jones said it appeared someone forced open a back door and set a fire in the kitchen in the rear of the two-story, wood-frame home. Jones said a home sprinkler system extinguished the fire and damage from the fire and water was minimal. A fire alarm alerted neighbors and they called 911, Jones said. The rental home was vacant at the time of the fire. Both fire officials and detectives from the Battle Creek Police Department are investigating.

Residential, Single Family Home

Santa Rosa Beach, FL – House fire caused by lightening strike limited by sprinkler system

… The third call was for a reported direct lightning strike of a home on Dill Ave in the Rosemary Beach area. Crews were able to contain the fire damage to the attic. The home’s sprinkler system also helped limit the damage. All of the structures were occupied when lightning hit, but no injuries were reported.

There were no immediate damage estimates. The Bay County Fire Department and Destin Fire Control District provided mutual aid.

Residential, Single Family Home

Orcutt, CA – House fire contained by residential sprinkler system; No injuries

Santa Barbara County Fire responded to a fire in a two story house fire at 896 Calle De La Rosa Sunday afternoon.

At 2:45 p.m. firefighters responded and found smoke coming from the home’s conjoined laundry room and office.

Officials say, it appears as though a computer in the office caught on fire.

The house, part of a new development in the area, had a sprinkler system installed in the room.

The sprinkler in the room was triggered by the heat and smoke, doused the fire with water, and was able to keep the flames contained to that room.

Residents were in the home at the time, but they all got out safely.

Fire investigators are currently looking into how the computer ignited.