Apartment Building, Residential Gainesville, FL – Apartment fire held in check by sprinkler system; Two cats rescued November 28, 2016 viking210 Two cats were rescued and a fire was contained to a bathroom in a Gainesville apartment Friday night, an incident that shows the value of sprinkler systems in buildings, said Gainesville Fire Rescue. The fire was reported a 9:45 p.m. at the Pine Hill Estates apartment complex at 1426 NW Third Ave. The fire alarm monitoring company indicated it was a “water-flow” alarm, GFR District Chief Allen Siorek said in a press release. A neighbor also called in to report smoke coming from the building. Firefighters forced their way into the apartment and found a fire in the bathroom. Siorek said the sprinkler system had activated, keeping the fire in check. Two cats were rescued but no one was in the apartment when the fire occurred. “While the fire is still under investigation, the importance of a working sprinkler system cannot be overstated,” Siorek said in the release. “Without these live-saving devices, the fire would have spread considerably, potentially damaging adjacent apartments and endangering the lives of other tenants who were home, including the residents above.”
