Halton Hills firefighters responded to the call at the Guelph Street business around 10:30 p.m., with smoke showing upon arrival.
Initial reports indicate that a battery charger in the service area had caught fire.
The building’s sprinkler system helped keep the blaze and its associated damage isolated.
The fire occurred around 12:30 p.m. at the Toy Chest, said Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione, a city public safety spokesperson.
She said, “Upon arrival, JCFD observed a small working fire in the toy chest store. The fire caused moderate smoke conditions inside the mall.”
“The sprinkler system went off and helped contain the fire,” she added. “Additionally, the fire department’s quick response kept the fire under control without any fire extension to any other stores.”
No injuries were reported.
Officials on the scene reported the cause may have involved the hot water heater and duct work. The Fire Department is still investigating.
Police are investigating after a fire ignited Sunday afternoon inside the Salmon Arm Walmart.
The fire prompted the store’s evacuation around 4 p.m. on Aug. 4. Two employees outside the store said the blaze had allegedly been started by individuals who’d been using the changing rooms in the clothing area.
“The flames were shooting to the roof,” said one of the employees.
The Salmon Arm Fire Department and RCMP responded.
Salmon Arm RCMP spokesperson Const. Andrew Hodges confirmed police are investigating the suspected arson.
Salmon Arm Fire Chief Brad Shirley said the fire department received a report of a commercial structure fire just after 4 p.m. Firefighters from three fire halls were dispatched to the scene.
“Upon arrival, the fire involving hanging cloths had been mostly extinguished by staff and the sprinkler system,” said Shirley via email.
Shirley said damage from the fire was somewhat minor, though there was also smoke and water damage.
Brad Hesse, assistant chief of operations for Vancouver Fire Rescue Services, said an emergency call came in around 10 a.m. Saturday.
He said it’s too early to confirm the fire was arson, but it was “strange” that videos from customers’ phones showed it appeared to spark on a sofa in the store’s furniture department.
Hesse said the store was quickly evacuated and there are no reports anyone was injured.
Firefighters had trouble pinpointing the source of the blaze because of the thick black smoke emanating from the furniture department.
He said the sprinkler system helped keep the fire contained to that section and that crews were able to fully douse it after about 45 minutes.
However, the store in the 3500-block of Grandview Highway has extensive smoke and water damage. Hesse said it’s likely a lot of the product in the store is compromised by the thick smoke that circulated during the fire.
Hesse said about 40 firefighters and nine fire trucks were called in to the second-alarm blaze.
Vancouver police are also investigating to determine the cause of the blaze.
“We urge anyone who witnessed anything unusual in the store around the time of the fire to contact investigators immediately,” said Const. Tania Visintin, in a news release on Sunday afternoon.
The company released a statement to media that said the fire was set deliberately.
“This appears to be a criminal act of arson that will unfortunately and unfairly impact our customers, associates and the local community who rely on the store,” Walmart said.
“Setting a fire in a public setting is shocking, dangerous, and shameful.”
The store will re-open as soon as the necessary clean-up and repairs are complete.
“We will do everything we can to ensure the arsonist is identified and held accountable, including assessing our legal options to seek compensation from the arsonist for the damages caused by this act,” reads the statement.
Damages are estimated to be in the millions.
Though Walmart has over a dozen outlets around Metro Vancouver, the Grandview location is the only one in the city proper.
According to the Yuma Fire Department, at 5:30 a.m., crews were dispatched to a report of a “water flow alarm” in the 300 block of West 32nd Street. Upon arrival, crews found a large furniture store with heavy smoke and water exiting from the front door. Firefighters were able to enter the structure and extinguish the fire quickly.
It was discovered that a properly working fire sprinkler was able to prevent any further damage to the building and its contents, YFD said. No injuries were reported, and business operations were not disrupted.
“Fire sprinkler systems can keep fires from spreading and can also extinguish them. Fire spreads quickly and can double in size every minute. Even small fires can cause significant property damage and endanger those nearby. Contrary to many Hollywood portrayals, only sprinkler heads directly exposed to the heat activate, not those in the rest of the room, building, or complex,” YFD noted.
A YFD investigator discovered the fire’s area of origin was a shelf with lithium-ion batteries and a battery charging station, YFD said, noting “This is yet another call for service in which lithium-ion batteries have been involved.”
YFD offered the following battery charging tips:
Use the provided or approved charger for the battery
Do not use extension cords or overload surge protectors
Do not use damaged or deformed batteries
Keep batteries away from high temperatures, do not charge them if they are hot
Remove the battery from the unit when done charging and do not cover the battery
Do not keep batteries on a charger once the charging cycle is completed
Keep the battery away from other combustibles
Fire sprinkler systems save lives and property.
A grocery store has some minor damage after a fire Monday afternoon.
According to the Helena Fire Department, crews were dispatched to the Publix on Highway 17 just after 12:45 p.m. Monday.
Fire officials confirmed smoke was coming from the restroom area of the store. They say the building’s fire sprinkler system helped put out the fire quickly. Damage was limited to the restroom area.
Store employees quickly evacuated the store, even before firefighters arrived. No one was hurt.
The cause of the fire has not been released.
The Sierra Vista Mall is closed for the rest of the day following a fire near Game Stop.
Clovis Fire Department says the fire started around 2:15 p.m.
When crews arrived, they found smoke in the Game Stop area with flames coming from the attic above the restroom.
Officials say the sprinkler system did a good job of keeping the fire from spreading.
Both the City of Fresno and Fresno County Fire Department assisted Clovis with the fire.
No injuries have been reported.
The fire is still under investigation.
Fire broke out at the Uptown Mall in Virginia Thursday afternoon.
Pictures from the Northland Fire Wire showed dark, black smoke coming from the building.
The Fire Wire reported that the flames were contained to a storage area thanks to the mall’s sprinkler system.
Multiple area fire departments responded.
Nobody was injured.
The cause is being investigated by the Virginia Fire Marshal’s Office.
Uptown Mall was formerly known as the Thunderbird Mall.
Dispatch officials said crews responded to a Haven of Rest location on West Orr Street at 1:25 a.m. after someone reported the situation.
According to the Anderson City Fire Department, the fire damaged the building but was mostly contained to a trailer outside. They added that a sprinkler system helped prevent the fire from spreading inside.
Haven of Rest is a non-profit with a discipleship program that focuses on assisting people battling drug addiction. The organization posted the following message following the fire.
The Anderson City Fire Department confirmed no injuries were reported following the incident. However, they are still investigating what caused the fire.
