Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Hagerstown, MD – Sprinkler system extinguishes blaze at Villa Italian Kitchen

A cooking fire Thursday afternoon caused about $2,500 in damages to Villa Italian Kitchen at Premium Outlets, according to the Office of the State Fire Marshal.

A sprinkler system activated when the 2:20 p.m. fire broke out and the system extinguished the blaze before firefighters arrived, according to a news release.

The fire was discovered by Jeffrey A. Bohrer, general manager of the eatery, the release said.

The blaze caused $1,000 in damages to contents in the shop, the release said.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Stratford, CT – Sprinklers help contain fire at business caused by malfunctioning fluorescent light

A malfunctioning light fixture is the apparent cause of a Wednesday night fire on East Main Street.  Firefighters were called at about 10:20 p.m. Wednesday from an employee of Ashcroft Inc., who reported that there was a fire inside the building located at 250 East Main St. Several second shift workers told the Stratford Fire Marshal’s Office that worsening smoke conditions were visible inside the production area.

Nearby employees evacuated the facility and some used three portable fire extinguishers to control the fire. Fire department officials said the building’s sprinkler system was activated due to worsening conditions, which held the fire in check until firefighters arrived at 10: 27 p.m.  Firefighters under the command of Assistant Chief Timothy Brennan extinguished the fire a short time later. Power was cut to the affected area of the building, fire officials said.

No injuries were reported. The fire marshal’s office investigator determined the cause of the fire was a malfunctioning fluorescent light fixture. Firefighters cleared the scene by 12:08 a.m. Thursday.

Office Building, Other Business

Chicago, IL – Parking garage fire at John Hancock Tower held in check by sprinkler system

A car caught fire Sunday morning at a parking garage inside the John Hancock Center on the Magnificent Mile. Over 150 firefighters responded about 9 a.m. to the two-alarm fire on the 7th floor of the parking garage at 149 E. East Delaware St., where heavy smoke conditions had been reported, according to Chicago Police and the Chicago Fire Department.

“The sprinkler system here did what it was supposed to do,” CFD District Chief Dan Cunningham told reporters “It kept the fire in check and it allowed us time to stretch a hose line to extinguish the fire.”

The fire was quickly struck out, but the “serious smoke conditions” on the 7th and 8th floors of the garage moved to other areas of the building, Cunningham said. People who were on the upper levels of the Hancock Center, including the 94th floor observation deck, requested help, but their calls were unfounded and no one was actually in distress. No injuries were reported, authorities said.

Ten people who were subjected to medical evaluations at the scene refused further medical treatment, Cunningham said. The Hancock Center was expected to reopen Sunday morning, Cunningham said.

“It will be business as usual as soon as we leave out of here,” he added.

Apartment Building, Residential

Everett, WA – Sprinkler system knocks down early morning apartment fire

Sprinklers and alarms did their job this morning after a fire broke out inside a unit at the NorthStar Apartments in the 3300 block of Lombard in Everett, Washington.  Shortly before 6 AM fire alarms were sounding and as the first Everett Fire engine arrived people were evacuating and reporting smoke and sprinkler activation on the first floor.  One person was removed from a ground floor unit by firefighters. He was taken by aid car to Providence Regional Medical Center to be checked as a precaution.  The sprinklers knocked down the fire and crews finished putting it out.  The fire was contained to the one unit.  An Everett Fire inspector is on scene now looking into the cause.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Mishawaka, IN – Fire in test booth at manufacturing facility is extinguished by sprinkler system

A fire broke out at AM General’s Mishawaka plant last Friday morning, causing an evacuation of employees.  According to our partners at WSBT, Penn Township Fire Department responded to the call from AM General’s H1 plant around 8:30 a.m. today. Upon arrival the firefighters found that the plant’s sprinkler system had extinguished the fire after two to three minutes. AM General spokeswoman Deborah Reyes said in an email that the fire was confined to a vehicle roll test booth, and caused “negligible impact to the production process as it was halted during the fire inspection.” No injuries or illness were reported. Reyes said the company will make temporary adjustments to its production process without the use of the roll test booth, and added that the company’s safety drills and tests were successfully executed.

Apartment Building, Residential

McKinney, TX – Apartment kitchen fire extinguished by sprinkler system; Fire Department reports

Units from the McKinney Fire Department (MFD) and its’ investigators were called to an apartment building at 6150 Alma Rd. on Tuesday for a water flow alarm. A kitchen fire had broken out in a second floor unit. Fortunately, the fire had already been extinguished by the apartment’s Fire Sprinkler System. The cause of the fire was determined to be a stove burner that the occupant had left on, which caused a plastic bowl to ignite.  “Never leave cooking food unattended and double check that stoves and ovens have been turned off,” said McKinney Fire Marshal Michael Smith. “This case shows how sprinklers save lives and property – avoiding millions in damage and repair costs.”

Apartment Building, Residential

Normal, IL – Fire at student apartment building kept from spreading by automatic sprinkler system

The Normal Fire Department reports an automatic sprinkler kept a fire from spreading in a student apartment on Willow Street Wednesday afternoon.  The department received the call after 1 p.m. for the fire in a third floor bedroom at The Lodge on Willow. Firefighters discovered that the sprinkler in the bedroom was putting water on the fire. Firefighters ventilated the room and made sure the fire was out. “This is a perfect example of a fire sprinkler system getting water on an early stage fire fast and knocking the fire down before it got out of control,” Normal Fire Chief Mick Humer said in a release. Moderate smoke and heat damage was reported to the bedroom with water damage to the room’s contents. Damage was confined to the bedroom.  The occupant was not home. No injuries were reported.  No damage estimate is yet available as investigators try to determine the cause.

Apartment Building, Residential

Dover, NH – Apartment kitchen fire extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

A fire at a Grove Street apartment Sunday was much different from one that occurred there nearly 16 years ago because of the sprinkler system that was installed, said the city’s fire chief.  At around 5:25 p.m. Sunday, the department was dispatched to the apartment building on 71 Grove St. And by the time the firefighters got the hose up to the second floor for the cooking fire, it was extinguished by the sprinkler system. The sprinkler system was added when the building was rehabilitated after the fire because of changes in the city’s fire code, Hagman said.

The fire on April 1, 2002, started in a second-floor apartment, like the one on Sunday. However, unlike Sunday’s fire, the 2002 one required rescuing two people from the apartment, said Chief Eric Hagman. Current Assistant Fire Chief Paul Haas was a firefighter then and a part of that rescue, he said.  The fire began in the kitchen where residents were getting ready to fry food when the oil got too hot and ignited, Hagman said. The fire spread to the kitchen cabinets but when the heat sensing sprinkler system activated, the fire was soon extinguished, Hagman said.

He said the residents, while they could have stayed at the apartment last night, went elsewhere for the night. The apartment below experienced some water damage. However, Hagman said that is much different than having to relocate all the residents in the building because of a fire, which occurred in the 2002 fire.

“That’s the benefit of having a code required sprinkler system,” he said. “There was no need for rescues and people got to stay in their apartments. It was a real good outcome.”

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Cambridge Springs, PA – Sprinklers help minimize damage in compressor room fire at manufacturer

A fire that occurred the evening of Feb. 5 at Lord Corp. in Cambridge Springs caused minimal damage, according to Cambridge Springs Volunteer Fire Department Jeff Murdock.  Cambridge Springs firefighters were called to a structure fire at Lord Corp. at 5 p.m., according to Murdock.  When crews arrived they found heavy smoke and a small fire coming from a compressor located on a mezzanine area, Murdock said.  The fire was declared out by 5:35, Murdock said. The sprinkler system in the building activated, which caused some water damage to a break room and restroom located under the sprinklers, according to Murdock.

A crew working in the building noticed the smoke and evacuated, according to Murdock.  “As they were evacuating they saw the fire start,” he said.  The fire is considered to be accidental due to an overheated motor and belt, Murdock said.  Cambridge Springs firemen were assisted at the scene by volunteer crews from Venango, Saegertown, West Mead 2 and Edinboro. Meadville Area Ambulance Service was also at the scene.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Centralia, WA – Overnight fire at restaurant doused by sprinkler system

A kitchen fire damaged Centralia’s Casa Ramos restaurant Saturday night, according to the Riverside Fire Authority.  Smoke was reported coming from the restaurant in the 900 block of Harrison Avenue at 11:56 p.m. Saturday. The business was closed and no employees were at the location.  Deputies from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office were at the scene and confirmed seeing smoke in the bar area.  Firefighters forced entry and found a small fire burning on the floor near a “large natural gas burner,” according to the RFA.

The restaurant’s sprinkler system extinguished most of the fire, and firefighters used a small amount of water to take care of the rest.  The kitchen sustained heat and smoke damage. According to the RFA, the building’s owner believed the business would be open the following day.  The fire is not considered suspicious, but the cause is under investigation, according to the RFA.  The Chehalis Fire Department, West Thurston Regional Fire Authority and the Centralia Police Department also responded.

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