Category Archives: Shopping Mall

Retail, Shopping Mall

Riverside, CA – Arson fire at shopping mall extinguished by sprinkler system

A homeless man was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of starting a small fire at the Galleria at Tyler in Riverside.  The fire was reported about 8:45 a.m. in a part of the mall that is under construction. Riverside Fire Investigations Supervisor Ray Mendoza said the fire was extinguished by the mall’s sprinkler system, but part of the mall was still evacuated as a precautionary measure.

The fire alarm closest to the fire was in test mode, which caused a delayed response from city firefighters. Mendoza said it’s common for fire alarms to be in test mode in buildings under construction.
When firefighters did arrive at 1299 Galleria at Tyler to investigate the extinguished fire, which caused about $5,000 in damage, they determined it was intentionally ignited.  Mall security told firefighters they knew where the suspect, 28-year-old Brian Haugh, was at the time.  Hough was arrested on suspicion of arson and taken to the Robert Presley Detention Center, where bail is set at $35,000.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Missoula, MT – Sprinkler system activates to help prevent dumpster fire from spreading into shopping mall

Witnesses say thick smoke was billowing into the Southgate Mall late Friday evening as emergency crews responded to a fire outside the shopping center. 

Retail, Shopping Mall

West Burlington, IA – Jewelry store fire in shopping mall extinguished with help from sprinkler system

A small fire caused occurred at Kay’s Jewelry Store about 7 p.m. Wednesday at Westland Mall.  West Burlington Fire Chief Shaun Ryan said his firefighters responded to the mall about 7 p.m. on the report of smoke coming from a storage facility on the second-floor of the store.  He said sprinkler systems activated and extinguished most of the fire by the time fire crews arrived.  He said firefighters were able to knock down the remainder of the small fire within minutes.

The entire mall was evacuated for about 90 minutes while firefighters removed smoke from the area, he said. The mall’s alarm system is on the same circuit so fire alarms went off throughout the building. 

He said the cause of the investigation remains under investigation.  No injuries were reported.  The Burlington Fire Department assisted West Burlington at the scene.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Oakville, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system knocks down fire at shopping mall caused by welding sparks

The Oakville Fire Department says no one was injured after fire broke out at the Oakville Place shopping mall earlier this morning (Tuesday). Fire crews were called to the mall at around 9 a.m.  Deputy Fire Chief George Birtig said the fire started at the building’s south side when sparks from welding, which was taking place on the roof in an area undergoing renovations, dropped down into a storage area on the second floor and ignited some products there.

“That set off the sprinkler system,” said Birtig.  “When we got there, there was still some flame left, but the sprinklers had knocked down the majority of the fire.”

Firefighters quickly extinguished what was left of the blaze.  Birtig said the mall was not open when the fire took place and so no shoppers were impacted.  Oakville Place staff said they were hopeful the mall could be reopened around noon.

Retail, Shopping Mall, Uncategorized

Scottsdale, AZ – Parking garage fire kept in check by sprinkler system; No injuries

Shoppers at Scottsdale Fashion Square were briefly evacuated Thursday afternoon after a car caught fire in one of the shopping center’s parking garages.

The garage’s sprinkler system kept the fire under control until the Scottsdale Fire Department could arrive and fully extinguish the fire, according to Fire Department Capt. Jim Novotny.

The shopping center was re-opened. Novotny said no one was injured in the incident.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Halifax, NS, Canada – Shopping center fire extinguished by sprinkler system; Fire spread limited

Firefighters responded to a store fire in the Halifax Shopping Centre last Tuesday evening. Ben Moss Jewellers suffered both smoke and fire damage, as well as problems due to the water from the sprinklers the blaze set off.

“We received a call about an alarm at the centre at 10 p.m. and upon our arrival, we realize a sprinkler was flowing,” said Halifax Fire spokesman Scott Blackburn.  “We made our way in and we observed the issues at the jewelry store. The fire had been extinguished from the sprinkler.”

There were 14 responders and they forced their entry into the store to clear the area and do ventilation work. There were no injuries. Firefighters believe they may have a cause for the fire.

“There are renovations going on. There was welding work going on above and we believe sparks may have hit and ignited combustible material on the customer counter.”

The Halifax Shopping Centre was open Wednesday, except for Ben Moss, which was slated to be shut down in the next few weeks due to poor financial performance.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Las Vegas, NV – Fire at strip mall contained to bathroom with help from sprinkler

A business in the southwest part of the valley was damaged Saturday night in a fire.

Around 8:30 p.m., the Clark County Fire Department responded to a report of a fire at 8090 S. Durango Drive, near Windmill Lane. Upon arrival,  personnel reported a single-story strip mall with a small volume of smoke coming from the structure.

Crews forced entry and made an offensive fire attack. The fire was found in Suite 111, the location of Prime Social Marketing, in a bathroom. Crews knocked down the fire with the aid of sprinkler activation.

Firefighters were able to prevent extension to other suites of the building. The fire is under investigation. Damages have not been estimated.

There were no injuries reported.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Scottsdale, AZ – Overnight fire at strip mall minimized by sprinkler system

Functioning sprinkler systems and work from the Scottsdale and Tempe fire departments helped keep a strip mall fire to a minimum overnight. Crews responded to a reported fire near Scottsdale Road and McDowell where they found smoke on the inside of the building. Firefighters found a small fire inside, but fortunately, the sprinklers were keeping it from spreading further. No one was inside the building at the time and no injuries were reported. At this time, there is no word on what caused the fire.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Cleveland, TN – Sprinklers help keep dumpster fire from spreading into store

One of the anchor stores at Bradley Square Mall was closed Sunday after a fire occurred in a dumpster/trash compactor just outside the business. At approximately 1:15 p.m., the Cleveland Fire Department responded to a fire reported at the Belk department store. According to CFD reports, firefighters found the fire in the dumpster outside the loading dock of the store. The flames were quickly extinguished.

Additional units were called to the scene and made entry to the stock room area of Belk, where they found heavy smoke. The sprinkler system had also been activated and water was flowing into the stock room, reports said. The fire in the dumpster was brought under control approximately 15 minutes after the first fire units arrived, and the sprinkler system was soon disabled.

Heavy-duty fans were brought in to remove any residual smoke from the business. Battalion Chief Robert Gaylor said in his report that there was substantial smoke and water damage in the stock room area, and some smoke damage in the store’s shopping area.

The store manager told the fire department that Belk would close for the remainder of the day and reopen on Monday. “The mall manager as well as security and the store manager were on the scene and were very helpful in assisting us with evacuating the mall and securing the area,” Gaylor’s report stated.

Due to the nature of the fire, the Arson Investigation Division was called to the scene and was attempting to determine the cause of the fire Sunday afternoon. It remains under investigation today.  No injuries were reported from the fire.