Category Archives: School / University

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

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Bradenton, FL – Overnight electrical fire at elementary school extinguished by fire sprinklers

An electrical fire damaged an office at Manatee Elementary School early Thursday, according to the Bradenton Fire Department.

At 3:47 a.m. Thursday morning, firefighters responded to Manatee Elementary School, 1609 Sixth Ave. E and worked to extinguish a fire that was determined to be electrical in nature.

According to the Bradenton Fire Department, firefighters arrived to find no visible flames, but after going into the school they detected smoke. Firefighters saw the school’s sprinkler system had been activated in the school office area where heavy smoke was detected.

Using thermal imaging, firefighters were able to determine the fire started from electrical wiring and the sprinkler system had already put out the flames.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Des Moines, IA – Fire sprinklers extinguish fire started by a student in school bathroom

A small fire in a bathroom at Lincoln High School forced the building’s evacuation Monday morning and classes were canceled for the rest of the day.

School officials said the fire started in a first-floor boys bathroom before 8:30 a.m. and the school’s sprinkler system turned on and put out the fire.

“So there’s some water damage, some smoke damage and minimal amount of fire damage in the bathroom. Probably be some structural damage to the walls that will have to be replaced due to the water and the smoke,” Des Moines Fire Lieutenant Chris Clement said.

The Des Moines Fire Department said the cause of the fire is being investigated.

Phil Roeder, with the Des Moines Public School District, said they were able to identify the student involved and they could be facing disciplinary action.

“The police department and our SRO responded very quickly to find out who the person was behind this. Staff was working with authorities both to make sure students were safe, but also helping to identify who they thought triggered this as well. It was a good team effort,” Roeder said.

Students and staff were allowed into the Roundhouse and Commons while fire crews responded.

Roeder said students will be back in class on Tuesday.

“Because the bathroom fire was on the front part of the school, things like the gymnasium and all that are on the backside of the school and pretty far away from where any smell is. So activities are going to go on at school as usual and we expect the clean up for the most part to be completed today and classes will start back up at 8:30 tomorrow morning,” Roeder said.

Students will have to make up the school time that was lost on Monday, but Roeder said they might not be able to start making it up until after the holidays.

“We’ll sit down and look at the hours, look at the calendar and make sure the time we lost today gets made up appropriately and get on with the rest of the school year,” Roeder said.

College/University (on campus), School / University

Anchorage, AK – Fire caused by a malfunctioning switchboard at university stopped by sprinkler system

After a two-week closure of the Administration/Humanities Building due to a fire, the building is now reopened as of Oct. 14.

The Sept. 29 fire started due to electrical malfunctions in the building’s main distribution switchboard. The sprinkler system was triggered by the fire, but there was little water damage to the building and its equipment, according to Deputy Director of Facilities and Campus Services, Ryan Buchholdt.

The cause behind the switchboard malfunction is under investigation. Buchholdt speculated that the age of the equipment may have contributed to the cause of the fire.

“The fire was contained within the main distribution switchboard, resulting in a total power outage until repairs could be completed,” Buchholdt said.

The utility service is connected to the building by the switchboard, which is designed specifically for the Administration/Humanities Building. Replacement parts for the switchboard are not readily available, Buchholdt said, so new parts had to be engineered and others ordered, which took several weeks.

The fire started on a Sunday afternoon, so there was little time to reschedule classes in the building, Buchholdt said. All classes the following Monday, Sept. 30, were canceled by University Leadership. They were relocated to various buildings around campus throughout the rest of the week.

“Fifty-six class sections and approximately 70 faculty and staff had to be temporarily relocated to other places on campus until the building could be reopened,” Buchholdt said.

The relocation was organized by the Office of the Registrar. The Alaska Middle College classes also held in the building were relocated to the UAA/APU Consortium Library.

Lindsey Chadwell, the University Registrar of Student Affairs and Enrollment Services, communicated the incident to as many people as possible through social media.

“We worked jointly on messaging with the Office of University Advancement, which sent out broad communications via email, social media and the UAA website alerting the campus community to the building’s closure,” Chadwell said.

In addition to the 56 classes, the offices of the Chancellor, Provost, Vice Chancellor for Administrative Services and some members of University Advancement are also located in the Administration/Humanities Building. These offices were relocated to the University Lake Building by Facilities and Campus Services. Smaller units were relocated to the UAA/APU Consortium Library and Professional Studies Building. Staff in the building were also given the opportunity to work from home via computer if they were able to do so.

All main electrical equipment that is similar in age to the switchboard will be inspected by Facilities and Campus Services. Regular inspections will also continue, Buchholdt said.

“In addition to steps that can prevent this sort of incident in the future, our Incident Management Team, which includes representatives from University Police, Facilities and Campus Services, Dean of Students Office and University Advancement, will evaluate the overall response to find ways to improve our emergency practices,” Buchholdt said.

For more information on the Administration/Humanities Building fire and equipment inspections, contact Facilities and Campus Services through its page on the UAA website.

College/University (on campus), School / University

Vancouver, BC, Canada – Sprinkler system contained fire on university campus; No injuries reported

According to a statement issued by the Vancouver school, the “small fire” was discovered early Saturday morning but was fully extinguished and there were no injuries.

“While there is limited damage from the fire and the sprinkler system, we are grateful that it is not more extensive,” the statement read.

“The areas most impacted are the Research and Industry Office and Painting and Drawing studios on Level 4. There is also some water damage in other areas of the building.”

The school, located at 520 East 1st Ave., remains closed on Sunday while restoration crews continue the mop-up and repair, and as Vancouver police continue their investigation into the cause of the fire.

“We would like to thank members of the Emily Carr community for their patience and understanding,” the statement read.

School officials expect to issue an update no later than 6 a.m. on Monday about whether the school will re-open on Monday.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Danvers, MA – Fire sprinkler quickly puts out fire started in school bathroom by student

A 15-year-old juvenile is suspected of setting a fire in a bathroom at Danvers High School on Wednesday that caused thousands of dollars of damage and forced the school to evacuate and dismiss students for the day.

The fire was quickly extinguished, but students were dismissed due to a sprinkler activation and the need for cleanup, according to a press release from the Danvers Police Department.

Police said a 15-year-old from Danvers has been identified as the suspect and that criminal charges are pending. Officials described the incident as an “intentional act of vandalism.”

Firefighters and police responded to a fire alarm at Danvers High School on Cabot Road at 8:12 a.m. The alarm triggered the evacuation of students by staff. The fire was discovered in the third-floor men’s bathroom and was quickly extinguished, officials said.

The Danvers Police Department’s criminal investigation division is working with the Essex District Attorney’s Office on pending criminal charges.

Afternoon and evening events were scheduled to take place as scheduled at Danvers High School on Wednesday, and school will be open for a regular school day on Thursday, school officials said.

College/University (on campus), School / University

Las Cruces, NM – Electrical appliance fire on university campus extinguished by sprinkler system

Officials with New Mexico State University reported a fire on campus Monday morning.

The fire took place at the Engineering Complex III building around 5:30 a.m.

The fire chief with the NMSU Fire Department said it was contained to one room.

NMSU officials said an electrical appliance overheated. The fire was extinguished by the building’s automatic sprinkler system.

Extensive water damage was reported.

Portions of the building are open; other areas will be closed as crews work to clean the area.

The school advises students to check with their professors for any alternative class locations.

The university’s website showed the building would be closed Monday morning.

Other - School / University, School / University

Baton Rouge, LA – Fire at nursing school contained by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

Classes have been canceled for some Southern University students following a weekend fire.

The fire was reported at the nursing school building around 1 a.m. Sunday. Officials say the sprinkler system was activated, and the fire was contained and extinguished.

No one was inside the building at the time.

Firefighters arrived at the scene and secured the area. The university said that Monday classes that were supposed to be held in the building were canceled.

Officials said Monday the incident was deemed an electrical fire. 

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Beaufort County, SC – Fire is kept from spreading at school thanks to sprinkler system activation

A laptop left charging on a “combustible” material started a small fire at Beaufort Academy Sunday morning, officials with the Lady’s Island St. Helena Fire District say.

The fire department first responded to the school at 6:24 a.m. after a passerby noticed the fire alarm sounding and called 911, said Scott Harris, fire district spokesman.

Crews did not notice signs of a fire after walking through the building, Harris said. The fire’s location, inside a classroom, was discovered after reviewing data from the school’s sprinkler system.

Fire and water damage were restricted to the classroom because the sprinkler system activated only in that location and it was able to extinguish the fire before it spread, Harris said.

About 300 students from preschool through 12th grade attend Beaufort Academy, the school’s website says. It describes itself as an independent college preparatory school.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Flint, MI – Single sprinkler head extinguishes maintenance room fire at high school

A sprinkler system extinguished a fire in the maintenance office at Carman-Ainsworth High School Tuesday night.

Assistant Fire Chief Michael Burkley said the Flint Township Fire Department was alerted to a sprinkler activation at about 10:41 p.m. inside the building at 1300 N. Linden Road. The sprinkler set off a water flow alarm at the department.

Burkley said when firefighters arrived, they found water flowing out of the building in the loading dock and swimming pool areas and could see smoke in the hallway near the swimming pool. Firefighters forced their way into the building and saw the water was coming from the maintenance office.

“Luckily, there was a single sprinkler head in that office that put out the fire,” Burkley said. “They’re designed to go off when temperatures get to over 150 degrees. The fire was contained to a desk that had electronic items on it. You could see where it burned up the wall. If there had been no sprinkler there, it would have been much worse.”

Burkley said a sprinkler system can put out about 35 to 50 gallons of water a minute. Once firefighters determined the fire was extinguished, they shut down the sprinkler system and remained on the scene until about midnight sweeping water from the building and setting up ventilation fans to rid the building of smoke.

Burkley said there was no one in the building at the time of the fire. He said school administration and maintenance staff quickly showed up after being alerted by a monitoring company and Genesee County 911. He said an employee of the sprinkler company also came to the scene to install a new sprinkler head and reset the system.

Water also ran into the boiler room, but no damage was caused to the equipment there.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Classes were being held at the high school Wednesday morning.

The Flint Township Police Department assisted at the scene.

Other - School / University, School / University

Flint Twp, MI – Maintenance office fire put out by fire sprinklers

A sprinkler put out a small fire Tuesday night inside the maintenance office at Carman-Ainsworth High School.

Firefighters with the Flint Township Fire Department were called out shortly before 11:45 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 3 to the high school, 1300 N. Linden Road, for a sprinkler activation in the building.

Flint Township Assistant Fire Chief Michael Burkley said the activation alerted the department to a water flow alarm.

Firefighters responding to the high school discovered water flowing out of the building in the loading dock area and some in the hallway.

After forcing entry into the building, Burkley said it was noticed the water was coming from the maintenance office where the sprinkler had been activated upon temperatures reaching 150 degrees.

“The sprinkler system contained the fire,” he said. “We just overhauled, shut the sprinkler system down.”

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but Burkley said there were electronics in the office, and it’s believed something plugged in led to the incident that caused “very little damage.”

Firefighters were on scene for approximately two hours.

Water also made its way into the school’s boiler room, but no damage took place to any equipment in the area.

Burkley said the sprinkler system can generate between 35-50 gallons of water flow a minute.

The Flint Township Police Department also responded to the scene to assist the fire department. The incident remains under investigation.

Classes were in session at the high school as scheduled Wednesday morning.

Carman-Ainsworth Community Schools Superintendent Eddie L. Kindle could not be immediately reached for comment Wednesday morning.