Category Archives: School / University

NOTE – Residence Hall, Dormitory, and Fraternity-Sorority is included under Residential Category

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Sevierville, TN – Sprinkler system activated for fire at primary school; No injuries reported

Sevierville Primary School had to be evacuated briefly Friday afternoon after a small fire caused smoke to fill the area around the school’s kitchen.

According to Sevier County Schools, an appliance issue caused the smoke around 12:15 p.m. The city of Sevierville said fire crews arrived to find a basket of clothes sitting on top of a dryer on fire.

The principal evacuated the school. The Sevierville Fire Department and maintenance crews were called in to respond.

The city said the automatic sprinkler system activated and was able to extinguish most of the fire, and crews put out the rest. The area around the dryer suffered minor damage. 

No one was hurt in the incident. SCS said students returned to class about 20 to 30 minutes later.

The school system said it is sending a letter home to parents with more details about the incident.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Waco, TX – Bathroom fire at high school knocked down by fire sprinkler

Waco High School was evacuated for a short time after a fire was reported in one of the building’s restrooms.

Waco Fire Department units were sent to the scene shortly after the noon hour and found that the fire had not extended beyond the one room.

Waco ISD spokesman Joshua Wucher said the automatic sprinkler system knocked down the fire.

There was some minor smoke damage to the restroom, but Wucher said that none of the students or staff were in any real danger.

Students were allowed back into the building a short time later with classes resuming.

An investigation was underway into the source of the fire.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Doylestown, PA – Fire sprinklers extinguish early morning fire at high school; No injuries reported

A defective air purifier was likely responsible for an early-morning fire in a first-floor classroom at Central Bucks High School West Sunday, police said.

The school will be closed for the week as damage is assessed, district officials said. All lessons will be conducted virtually.

No injuries were reported from the fire that happened at around 3:30 a.m. at the school located at 375 W. Court St. in Doylestown Borough. Central Bucks Regional Police Chief Karl Knott said the fire resulted from a defective air purifier. He said there was minor damage to one classroom.

“Because of the hour, there were no students or faculty in the building, hence no injuries,” said Knott. 

Central Bucks School District officials expressed gratitude for first responders.

“We are deeply grateful that no one was hurt and for the quick response of the Doylestown Fire Company,” Superintendent of Schools John J. Kopicki said in an email to Central Bucks families. “We ask that our students and families allow officials time to do their work and avoid the campus as we work alongside them to secure and inspect the damage at CB West.”

Kopicki notified families across the district in a morning email. He said the fire was extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system. He said the Doylestown Fire Company was dispatched and arrived on campus. They are now “assessing and monitoring the scene of the incident.” 

School / University

Oxnard, CA – Fire sprinklers keep fire from spreading in school district storage building

Early Saturday morning, Oxnard City Fire extinguished a fire that flared up inside a storage building belonging to the Oxnard School District.

Firefighters responded to a two-story building on the 1000 block of South A Street around 4:25 a.m. The building was found to be used for storage and the archiving of school property.

Upon arriving, firefighters forced the first-floor door open and found the area to be filled with smoke. They used heat imaging cameras to locate the sources of the fire and extinguish them. Fortunately, City Fire reported, the building’s sprinkler system had activated which helped keep the fire from spreading through the rest of the building.

Once the fire was out around 4:51 a.m., crews determined that only supplies had burned rather than the building itself.

Investigators discovered that a window had been broken out on the first floor and one person was seen leaving the area around the time of the fire.

While it is unclear if this is an arsonist situation, police are looking for the subject for questioning on how the fire may have started.

Crews will continue working on water and smoke damage inside the building until it is fully functional.Ventura County

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Mt. Juliet, TN – Classroom fire at elementary school put out by fire sprinklers;no injuries reported

Emergency crews are on scene of a fire that broke out at Mt. Juliet Elementary school Monday.

Police said the fire is isolated to one classroom. It’s since been extinguished by the sprinkler system and firefighters.

There have been no reported injuries and Monday is a remote day for students.

Crews remain on the scene investigating.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Kearney, NE – Sprinkler system contains possible arson fire in elementary school bathroom

Police and firefighters are investigating a possible arson that occurred Tuesday at Bryant Elementary School in Kearney.

Around 6 p.m. emergency crews were called to an alarm at the school at 1611 Ave. C. When they arrived there was smoke inside the building.

The investigation revealed a paper towel dispenser had been set on fire in a boys’ bathroom inside the school, said a Kearney Police Department news release.

A sprinkler head in the bathroom contained the fire, said fire Capt. John Sydow. Firefighters extinguished the remaining fire.

Sydow estimated the bathroom sustained an estimated $5,000 damage. The fire is under investigation by the State Fire Marshal’s Office.

The fire didn’t interrupt any classes Wednesday at Bryant.

Other - School / University, School / University

Charleston, SC – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire in barracks at The Citadel; No injuries reported

Charleston County dispatch shows a reported fire at the Citadel.

The call came in at around 6:29 pm on Sunday, August 23.

Citadel officials say the fire was caused by an air conditioning unit that is above one of the barracks on campus.

The barracks were evacuated.

The fire caused the school’s sprinkler system to activate, which took care of the fire.

Officials say no one was injured during the fire.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Crawfordsville, IN – Sprinkler System put out fire at old high school entrance

A small fire at the southeast entrance to the former Crawfordsville High School on Jefferson Street was quickly extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system Thursday morning.

Damage to the former school, now a residential apartment building called Laurel Flats, was limited to the door itself and did not spread, Fire Chief Scott Busenbark said.

“It just damaged the door that was leaning on it,” Busenbark said. “We had Station 1 and Station 2 on the scene … an alarm like that always gets a full response.”

The fire threatened the gymnasium section of the 110-year-old building, which was added as an expansion to the original building in 1941.

No injuries were reported and the entryway suffered only minor damage due to the sprinkler system.

“It put it out on its own,” Busenbark said.

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

Officers from the Crawfordsville Police Department assisted at the scene.

College/University (on campus), School / University

Provo, UT – FIre inside storage cabinet stopped by fire sprinklers inside BYU campus building

Firefighters responded to a fire in the Ezra Taft Benson building this morning. The fire had already been contained when they arrived.

Public Information Officer Captain Sam Armstrong said Provo Fire and Rescue received a call from BYU at 10:53 a.m. saying hydrogen was on fire.

Armstrong said the department sent firefighters from multiple stations in case of the fire being a catastrophic event. “We would rather be prepared and send everybody than be behind the ball and try and play catch up.”

Armstrong was unable to confirm exactly what it was that had caught on fire, but he said the fire was contained in a storage cabinet that had a fire suppression sprinkler inside it.

When Provo Fire and Rescue arrived, it found the fire suppression sprinkler had already put the fire out. Firefighters then worked with BYU Engineering to help shut down the water system so the water didn’t cause damage.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Fallston, MD – Single sprinkler head knocks down fire in staff lounge at middle school; No injuries reported

Crews responded to a fire alarm that activated overnight at Fallston Middle School.

At just after 4:15 a.m. on Thursday, crews from the Fallston Volunteer Fire and Ambulance Company were dispatched to the school, which is located at 2303 Carrs Mill Road, for an automatic fire alarm activation.

Upon entering the area indicated on the alarm panel, firefighters found a single automatic sprinkler had activated and there was light smoke in the room, which was a staff lounge area that also contained IT servers.

An electric floor fan had been placed in the room to maintain air flow to assist in cooling the room. The fan malfunctioned and ignited directly below a sprinkler head, which activated extinguishing the fire and activating the fire alarm, thereby limiting the damage to the school building.

The fire was extinguished and the scene was cleared by 5:30 a.m.

No injuries were reported.