Category Archives: Primary / Secondary School

Primary / Secondary School

Mexico, MO – Overnight fire in utility closet at Catholic school extinguished by sprinkler system

At approximately 1 a.m. Wednesday, Mexico Department of Public Safety was called to St. Brendan School on Clark Street. Officers arriving on the scene found light smoke and evidence of the sprinkler system having activated.

Upon investigation, it was discovered that cardboard boxes in a utility room had been ignited by the water heater. The sprinklers had extinguished the small fire. There was very little damage from fire or smoke and there were no injuries. The fire did not cause any damage to the main building of the school.

St. Brendan Principal Kathy Coulson said students would be bringing their lunches for a few days so the school’s kitchen and gymnasium areas, which are near the storage room in which the fire started, could be cleaned of some smoke. Coulson said the school’s sprinkler system will also be replaced in the near future

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Charlotte, NC – Clothes dryer fire in middle school locker room is contained by sprinkler system

Practice made perfect for the student body of Randolph Middle Thursday morning; the school had two fire alarms: the first one was a drill, the second which occurred about an hour later, was real.

“We received additional calls from CMPD we had a fire in a room attached to the gym, flames in the room, the fire was upgraded. Once firefighters arrived on the scene, had light smoke showing,” said Captain Jackie Gilmore of the Charlotte Fire Department.

Firefighters said that some flammable items like cloth or paper had been left on a running drier and caught fire. “This fire did not get into the school, smoke did not get into any part of the structure.”

A working sprinkler system contained the fire, there was no structure damage. “This was part of a locker room to a back hallway, so all the smoke was contained and the fire department checked the building and said we were clear to go back in,” said Principal Brian Bambauer.

Fire officials said the timing of the drill was perfect and that the students learned first hand how important it is to know what to do in an emergency. Two employees suffered minor smoke inhalation and were treated at the school; there were no other injuries.  Investigators have labeled the incident an accident.

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Columbia, MD – Dryer fire in high school locker room contained by sprinkler system

Emergency crews responded to a Howard County school Tuesday morning after a fire broke out in a dryer in the locker room.

According to Howard County Fire and EMS, they were told there was fire in the locker room at Oakland Mills High School around 7:30 a.m.

The fire originated in the dryer and stayed confined to it after the sprinkler system was activated.

Crews put out the fire by 8 a.m.

Unites are currently ventilating the structure, restoring systems and making sure the school is safe for students to return.

No injuries were reported and the fire is under investigation.

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Cambridge, ON, Canada – Fire at high school extinguished by sprinkler system

Fire crews were called to Preston High School shortly after 1 p.m., after being notified of fire alarms going off inside the building. When they arrived, they found that the school had been evacuated.

According to Cambridge Fire Department platoon Chief Brad Churchill, crews entered the building to find that its sprinkler system had extinguished the fire, but heavy smoke persisted in a corridor and stairwell at the back of the building.

One staff member was taken to hospital, to be treated for symptoms of smoke inhalation. Firefighters spent much of the afternoon at the school, ventilating the building.  After being allowed back in to pick up their belongings, students were sent home for the rest of the afternoon.

Churchill said the evacuation went off “like clockwork” because the school regularly practiced fire drills. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

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Merritt, BC, Canada – Suspicious fire at elementary school extinguished by sprinkler system

A small fire that sparked in an office at Merritt Secondary School was quickly extinguished by the sprinkler system before the fire department arrived. The fire started just before 10 a.m. in a room that is adjacent to the main office on the ground floor. It was contained to that particular room, Merritt Fire Rescue Department Fire Chief Dave Tomkinson told the Herald.

Tomkinson said the fire was deemed suspicious and RCMP are investigating. The fire department cannot release any information pertaining to what burned, or the fire’s area of origin.

“There was a fair amount of water damage [to the room],” Tomkinson said. School District 58 superintendent Steve McNiven said the office where the fire sparked is a meeting room in the counselling area of the school.

McNiven said he’s not sure how the fire was discovered, and doesn’t know if anyone was using it at the time of the fire. The fire triggered the alarm and the school was evacuated. Students were allowed back in the building at about 1 p.m.

About 16 firefighters responded to the fire. Tomkinsoin said firefighters assisted the school board staff in salvaging efforts and cleaning up.

McNiven said he was pleased with how students and staff responded to the fire, noting that everyone evacuated the school appropriately and handled themselves well.

No injuries were reported in this incident.

Primary / Secondary School

Dallas, TX – Sprinkler system activates to help control early morning fire at school

Some classes at Parish Episcopal School’s Hillcrest campus are canceled Tuesday and Wednesday due to damage suffered while crews put out a fire at the school Sunday morning. Minor fire damage was done by the flames, which broke out in the attic of Building E — home to the Lower School’s main office, library and several classrooms — around 5:30 a.m., but water from firefighters and the building’s sprinkler system did “extensive” damage.

The fire was “quickly extinguished,” according to a Parish Episcopal School spokesperson. David Monaco, the Head of School at Parish Episcopal, wrote on Twitter that anything lost in the fire was “replaceable.”

Students in Pre-K through second grade will not have class Tuesday or Wednesday following the MLK holiday Monday. The after-school program was also cancelled for those days. Updates on any additional cancellations or relocations would be provided Wednesday. School officials have asked people to avoid going to the campus during the cleanup process, which began Sunday.  The Church of the Transfiguration, which shares the campus, did not suffer any damage to its buildings.

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Omaha, NE – Sprinkler system puts out overnight fire that started in school art room kiln

No one was injured when a kiln in an art room at Beadle Middle School in southwest Omaha sparked a fire overnight. Authorities said the fire activated the school’s fire alarm and sprinkler system. Officials say the sprinklers put out the fire before firefighters arrived. The fire was confined to the art room and no students were in the school at the time.

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Blue Springs, MO – Arson fire at high school is extinguished by sprinkler system

The Blue Springs School District has contacted federal authorities after receiving four threats in the last 10 days. The district said the latest threat came Monday in an email to a teacher. It arrived hours after a break-in and arson in the Blue Springs High School activities office.

“A Christmas tree was set on fire,” said Tom Phillips, the head of the police force for the Blue Springs School District. “The sprinkler system kicked on. It did what it was supposed to do, put the fire out.”

He said the fire caused thousands of dollars in water damage. He also said fire extinguishers were sprayed in some parts of the building and some windows were broken. He said these incidents have not been connected to the threat that came in Monday.

(It was) very generic. Doesn’t give any specifics,” said Phillips. “Doesn’t say where the threat is, where it’s at or anything like that.”

In the wake of Sandy Hook and terrorism worries, schools have to take threats seriously and work to strike a balance between prudence and paranoia.

Phillips, a former Jackson County sheriff, said it’s a collective decision. “I get with our administration. We get with our central office administrators,” he said. “We get with other law enforcement in the area. Are they receiving threats?”

Blue Springs was one of the first school districts in Missouri to have its own police force.

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Portland, OR – Intentionally-set fires at high school kept in check by sprinklers

Students at Portland’s James Madison High School got quite a scare Monday morning.

“Today we had a fire alarm this morning at 10 a.m.,” said Christine Miles, Spokesperson for Portland Public Schools.

She explained that a fire had been intentionally ignited in the boys restroom.  Shortly after, another fire was set in a school storage closet that was used for donated food.

“Inside, there is a sprinkler fire system that was activated by the heat which then kept that fire in check and kept it from extending further into the building,” said Lt. Rich Tyler with Portland Fire & Rescue.

But the two fires at Madison High on Monday weren’t the first to be set at the school recently.

“So far we have four fires that were set here. The 16th, the 17th and then two today,” said Tyler.

Three of the fires started in boys restrooms and investigators said all of them were believed to be arson.

“We do know that it is a student and we are interviewing the students to determine who the individual or individuals are,” Tyler said.

At this point, school is still on for Tuesday but Portland Public School officials want everyone to be on watch.

“We’re telling our community: ‘Please step forward if you know something so we can make an arrest or put an end to this as soon as possible,’” said Miles.

The principal also posted a letter to parents on the front page of the Madison High School website.

No students have been hurt in any of the fires.

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Quincy, IL – Sprinklers put out mattress fire at Chaddock School; No injuries

Emergency crews responded to a mattress fire Wednesday morning at Chaddock School, according to Asst. Fire Chief Bernie Vahlkamp.

The Quincy Fire Department says crews responded to the fire at 205 S. 24th St., in one of the cottages. Vahlkamp said the fire was out by the time firefighters arrived and that Quincy police are handling the situation.

“The sprinkler system put out the fire,” Vahlkamp said. “But, smoke did fill the room and hallway.”

Vahlkamp said there were no injuries.