Category Archives: Retail

Retail, Shopping Mall

Palm Springs, CA – Hallway fire at outdoor shopping plaza limited by automatic sprinkler system

Palm Springs firefighters put out an early Sunday morning blaze in downtown Palm Springs. Crews got the call of the fire at around 6 a.m. and found smoke in a building at the Mercado Plaza on Palm Canyon Drive. Firefighters say the blaze was contained in a exterior hallway by the sprinkler system. This blaze comes after a dumpster fire in the same area about a month ago.  An owner of Maracas Cantina says it’s frustrating this has happened more than once. “You don’t want to have these things coming up and as a business owner, it’s really disruptive,” Todd Flood, an owner of Maracas Cantina, said. “We’re going to open a couple hours late today and we miss some business.”  The fire did not cause any restaurants to close, just delays for some businesses opening, according to Flood. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Rehoboth Beach, MA – Fire at outlet mall caused by malfunctioning fluorescent light controlled by sprinkler system

A fire March 22 in the Ralph Lauren Polo outlet caused $5,000 in damage, officials say. Firefighters from Rehoboth Beach, Indian River and Lewes responded to the Midway Outlets at 4:19 a.m. for an automatic fire alarm and found a smoke-filled store, said Harry Miller, chief deputy state fire marshal. A sprinkler system was activated and kept flames under control, Miller said. No one was injured.  Miller said the fire was caused by a malfunction in a fluorescent light fixture which ignited combustible material nearby. He said damage was $5,000.

Auto Dealership, Other Business

Bismarck, ND – Fire at auto body shop extinguished by sprinkler system; Business resumes operations quickly

A fire, caused by welding sparks which ignited the filters of a spray booth ventilation system at an auto body shop, was largely contained by the business’ sprinklers on Tuesday. The Bismarck Fire Department was dispatched at about 4:23 p.m. to the 1800 block of Commerce Drive, where heavy smoke was showing from the shop area of the single-story building.

Fire had spread to the roof top HVAC system, but flames inside the shop had been extinguished by the activation of two heads on the fire sprinkler system, according to Owen Fitzsimmons, a fire marshal with the Bismarck Fire Department, who deemed the incident was accidental. Fire crews removed a roof top ventilation fan and a portion of the roof to access and extinguish the blaze. Afterward, a thermal imaging camera was used to scan for any fire spread, and firefighters left the scene at about 7:24 p.m.

Bismarck Police Department assisted with scene control. Metro Area Ambulance was on scene to provide assistance. There were no injuries to building occupants or firefighters. The sprinkler system has been reactivated, the business remains in operation.

Other - Retail, Retail

Piqua, OH – Sprinkler system quickly contains mechanical fire at welding product company

A Thursday afternoon fire at Hobart Brothers was quickly contained thanks to a sprinkler system and quick work by firefighters.

A “rec room fire” was reported at the Hobart Brothers business on Industry Park Drive around 2 p.m. Piqua Fire Department responded along with mutual aide from Covington Fire Department and Troy Fire Department.

All employees were evacuated from the building.

Assistant Piqua Fire Chief Jon Stevens said that the fire was in an industrial compressor unit in a mechanical room. Stevens said the sprinkler system kicked in and helped to confine the fire to the immediate area around the compressor unit but a cover over the unit kept the sprinklers from being able to fully extinguish the blaze.

Piqua and Covington firefighters entered the building and were able to get to the flames and finish the job of putting out the flames.

Damage was contained to the mechanical room area, according to Stevens, who estimated the damage at around $70,000.

There were no injuries reported and employees were able to immediately return to work as firefighters cleared the scene approximately 90 minutes after arriving.

Fletcher Fire Department responded as mutual aide and manned the Piqua Fire Station until Piqua units cleared the fire scene.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Lone Tree, CO – Storage room fire at shopping mall extinguished by sprinkler system

The sprinkler system extinguished a small fire inside Park Meadows Mall on Thursday afternoon, South Metro Fire Rescue said.  The fire was contained to a storage room in a back hall, officials said.  The food court was closed and evacuated while crews made sure everything was safe. The rest of the mall remained open.  Firefighters were leaving the scene a little after 3 p.m. The food court was likely to reopen soon after that.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

McKinleyville, CA – Sprinkler system at Safeway store keeps fire from spreading, limits damage

Arcata Fire District firefighters were called to a reported structure fire at the McKinleyville Safeway located at 1503 City Center Road.  Battalion Chief Gomes arrived on scene first and discovered black smoke coming from a vent on the back of the building. Being Sprinkler familiar with the building layout, Gomes knew the fire was in the storeroom and directed the first due engine from the McKinleyville Station to make entry at the rear of the store, and initiate fire attack.  Store employees confirmed the fires location and had initiated a building evacuation.  The crews located the fire in the loft machinery room, above the rear storeroom and the building’s sprinkler system had been triggered.  The fire attack team used the buildings ladder way to gain access to the loft and deploy a hose line to the fire to complete extinguishment.  The second arriving engine from Mad River Station supported the fire attack operation by securing a water supply. The third engine from Arcata Station, and subsequent arriving CalFire and Fieldbrook engines, assisted with water removal to the sales floor and storeroom and applied salvage techniques to save computer equipment and merchandise.   

The fire loss was minimal, with an estimate of $2000 in damages.  Battalion Chief Gomes reports “The fire was held by the sprinkler systems that had activated properly, which assisted the firefighters in quickly extinguishing the burning material.  The combination of the two, saved this multi-million dollar building and its contents. Safeway was open for business the next day.”

The cause of fire was determined to be ordinary combustibles stored too close to hot mechanical equipment.

Additional engines from Humboldt Bay Fire and Blue Lake Fire covered District stations while the incident was occurring.

Arcata Fire District would like to remind all businesses and residents to keep adequate clearance around mechanical and electrical service equipment and ensure that sprinkler systems and extinguishers are checked regularly and functioning properly.

Retail, Shopping Mall

San Jose, CA – Sprinkler system activates to limit spread of fire at retail strip mall

Firefighters knocked down a two-alarm fire this morning at a strip mall in San Jose, according to a San Jose Fire Department spokesman. At 3:18 a.m., fire crews responded to the blaze at a strip mall at 2455 Alvin Ave. At the scene firefighters found smoke coming from the roof, according to fire Capt. Brad Cloutier. At 3:31 a.m., the blaze was upgraded to two-alarms. Firefighters continued their attack on the fire, which was quickly knocked down. Coutier said no one was in the building when the fire broke out and there were no injuries to firefighters. The fire caused some damage to the building’s attic and the sprinkler system that was activated by the blaze, Cloutier said. Cloutier said that some businesses in the mall will probably have to be closed today due to the damage, and fire officials are working this morning to contact business owners. Crews will remain on the scene this morning to ensure hot spots are out, and traffic in the area might be affected, Cloutier said.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Montreal, QC, Canada – Sprinkler system limits spread of fire at Atwater Market

The Atwater Market has reopened following an early morning fire at one of the food stands attached to the exterior of the building.

The structure is a temporary extension to the market during the winter months, built with removable walls and awning.

Firefighters were called to the scene at 3:30 a.m. on Friday.

Martin Farmer, chief of operations for the Montreal fire department, said flames and smoke could be seen jutting from the side of the building.

No one was injured, but damages are estimated at around $50,000.

Farmer said the building’s sprinkler system did its job, helping limit the spread of fire.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Odessa, TX – Sprinkler system activates in fire at retail store in shopping mall

Odessa Fire Rescue responded to a fire at the At Home located at Music City Mall on Sunday night, which is now under investigation as possible arson. An auto sprinkler alarm notified OFR of the fire, which they responded to around 8:30 p.m. Sunday at Music City Mall, 4101 E. 42nd St, Odessa Spokeswoman Andrea Goodson said. Goodson said there is little detail available on the fire due to it being under investigation, but Goodson said it was contained fairly quickly and there were no injuries reported. An At Home employee said the store is currently open, but about half of the store is closed off due to the damage.

Restaurant, Shopping Mall

Casper, WY – Single sprinkler contains shopping mall restaurant fire until firefighters arrive

At approximately 12:00 AM Sunday morning, February 4th, Casper Fire-EMS responded to a fire alarm at the 600 block of Southeast Wyoming Boulevard, the Eastridge Mall. Firefighters say that they arrived and found a fire in a storage closet area of a restaurant in the building. The fire was accessed and extinguished a short time after arrival. There were no occupants of the building at the time of the fire.

No injuries were reported as a result. A cause is yet to be determined and remains under investigation. Prior to arrival of firefighters, a single head in the fire sprinkler system in the building activated. The action of the system controlled the fire until firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze. Officials say in a written statement to media, that the fire was contained to the storage area and damage was minimal. A value of damage to the building and contents has not been determined. 5 units of Casper Fire-EMS initially responded. They were assisted by Casper Police and the Wyoming Medical Center.

Casper Fire-EMS says that the fire illustrates the value of fire sprinkler systems. “The presence of the system in this case limited spread of the fire to other areas of the structure. What could have been a well-developed and growing fire was controlled in the area of origin until arrival of firefighters,” officials say in the written statement. “These systems represent an important life safety and property protection component of modern structures.”