Apartment Building, Residential Springfield, IL – Two sprinkler heads knock down arson fire at vacant apartment building February 8, 2017 viking210 Arson is suspected in an early-morning fire Sunday at the soon-to-be opened The Villas at Vinegar Hill apartment building. Springfield Fire Chief Barry Helmerichs said crews were called around 2:20 a.m. for an automatic alarm caused by sprinklers being activated. The sprinklers extinguished the blaze, but the new building suffered some smoke and water damage, Helmerichs said, adding vandalism also was noticed. The Villas at Vinegar Hill is a four-story, 92-unit apartment development for residents 62 and older being developed by The Springfield Housing Authority. It’s being built on the site of the former John Sankey Hi-Rise at 401 W. Allen St. Nobody is living in the building yet, Helmerichs said.
