Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Iowa City, IA – Sprinkler system helps contain fire at auto parts plant March 11, 2016 viking210 A structure fire damaged an Iowa City automotive parts plant and temporarily shut down operations Thursday morning, but no one was hurt, officials said. Iowa City Fire Department Battalion Chief Brian Platz said crews were dispatched to the fire at 11:07 a.m. for a report of smoke coming from the east side of the International Automotive Components building at 2500 Highway 6 in Iowa City. Platz said a fire began in a paint booth in the building and was transmitted through a smokestack to the roof. The fire in the booth itself was contained by the building’s sprinkler system, he said. “Their system extinguished the fire in the booth itself, but it didn’t cover anything above the booth,” Platz said. Crews then used water to extinguish the fire on the roof and in the smokestack, making sure that it would not spread, and Platz said firefighters were able to bring the flames under control using very little water. Thirteen personnel responded to the incident and had the blaze under control within about 40 minutes, according to Platz. And the building’s management was able to evacuate all employees and confirm their safety “very quickly,” he said.
