Tag Archives: Afternoon (12pm-6pm)

Apartment Building, Residential

Asheboro, NC – Apartment’s fire sprinklers help put out kitchen fire; No injuries reported

No one was injured in an Asheboro apartment fire Thursday evening.

According to Chief Danny Floyd with the Asheboro Fire Department, firefighters responded to the West Pointe Apartment Homes, located at 635 Oak Leaf Road, at approximately 5:40 p.m.

The fire, which was caused by items burned on a stove top, was out by the time firefighters arrived on scene.

There was minor fire damage to the kitchen, Floyd said, but the majority of the damage was caused by water from the apartment’s fire sprinklers.

The water damage also impacted two other apartment units.

Firefighters remained on scene for two hours for ventilation, salvage and investigation.

Sarah Israel, who lives in an apartment unit beside the one that caught fire, said she came outside of her apartment and noticed that her neighbor’s door was drenched with water.

“I live right beside her and I heard an alarm,” Israel said, “but that alarm sounded so distant that it didn’t alarm me to come outside and say ‘what is that?’ ”

It wasn’t until Israel wandered outside that she noticed the damp door and was able to tell that the alarm she was hearing was coming from the unit right beside her own.

“I think if I wouldn’t have come outside, it would have been a lot worse because I was the first one to hear.”

Apartment Building, Residential

LaGrange, GA – Bathroom apartment fire contained by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

LaGrange fire crews responded to a fire at an apartment complex shortly after noon Saturday.

The fire happened at Mallard Lake Apartments on Old Airport Road.

As firefighters were en route to the complex, Troup County 911 was told that a bathroom in an apartment unit was on fire.

Firefighters were able to contain the fire with a sprinkler system and quickly extinguished the fire with a minimal amount of water.

No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Adult Care/Rehab Center, Hospital/Care Facility

Ooltewah, TN – Fire sprinkler system keeps fire contained to janitorial closet at nursing home; No injuries reported

The Life Care Center in Ooltewah escaped major fire damages when a fire suppression system at the facility activated around 5:40 Saturday evening.

The Highway 58 Volunteer Fire Department responded to a 911 call reporting a kitchen fire at the nursing home near 5911 Snow Hill Road.

The Highway 58 VFD reported a small fire in a laundry bin. The fire sprinkler system kept the fire contained to the janitorial closet.

The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office.

According to the Chattanooga Fire Department, no injuries were reported but HCEMS was on the scene.

The Chattanooga Fire Department says all residents were temporarily moved to another wing of the facility.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Yorktown, VA – Sprinkler system controls fire at school after electrical fire in equipment room

Grafton High School and Grafton Middle School in York County were evacuated Monday afternoon after an electrical fire set off the sprinkler system. The two schools will now be closed for the next two days for cleanup.

York Fire and Life Safety crews were called to the school complex around 3:45 p.m. Arriving units found heavy smoke and fire in an equipment room. The initial fire was controlled by the sprinkler system.

Regular classes had dismissed for the day at that point, and all students and other personnel who were there for after-school activities got out safely.

If your kids were there for after-school activities, you can pick them up at the nearby Amory Funeral Home, located at 410 Grafton Drive. All remaining activities at the schools for the day are canceled.

As a result of the fire, Grafton Middle and High Schools will be closed Tuesday, February 4, and Wednesday, February 5.  All after-school activities on those days are also canceled.

School employees will receive a communication from their building principals regarding staff schedules.

A plan is being worked on for students and staff to reclaim any personal possessions left on campus.

Apartment Building, Residential

Saskatoon, SK, Canada – Fire sparked by candle put out by fire sprinklers at 13-story apartment

A candle sparked a fire that forced the evacuation of a 13-storey apartment building in Saskatoon on Sunday.

The Saskatoon Fire Department (SFD) said it received a residential fire signal from the building at 530 25th St. E. at 3:23 p.m.

Nothing was showing from the exterior of the building when crews arrived, but a check found smoke on the third floor from a fire in a suite, SFD said.

The building was evacuated and residents were taken to the neighbouring YWCA building. Tenants with mobility issues were sheltered in their suites.

The fire department said the building’s sprinkler system put out the fire prior to their arrival, but heavy smoke remained throughout the third floor.

Higher carbon monoxide levels were reported on the third floor and above, SFD said, and positive pressure ventilation was used on each floor to remove smoke and toxic gasses.

Residents were allowed back to their apartments once carbon monoxide levels returned to zero.

A fire investigator determined a candle ignited stationary on a desk, starting the fire.

Damage is estimated at $100,000 due to the significant amount of water discharged from the sprinkler system.

Residence Hall/Dormitory, Residential

Boone, NC – Fire sprinkler in dorm room keeps fire from spreading

A small fire from a cooking accident occurred at the Appalachian Heights on Bodenheimer Drive on Jan. 26 at 4:41 p.m.

Boone Fire Department Battalion Chief Kent Brown said the sprinkler system in the room where the fire occurred activated and kept the fire from spreading.

Housekeeping is on scene cleaning up the water from the sprinkler systems on the first and second floors.

Residents on the right side of the building are not allowed inside until further notice, while residents on the left side of the building have been permitted back in.

Marielle Tooley, a resident on the second floor said the situation happened fast.

“We all went outside and the firemen took care of it pretty quickly and now we’re just waiting on the mess to be cleaned up,” Tooley said.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Fargo, ND – Fire at nursing home contained thanks to fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

A fire burned through the roof of a Fargo nursing home on Thursday, forcing the evacuation of about 115 residents, authorities said. No injures were reported.

Some residents of a south side Fargo nursing home were moved to an adjoining chapel Thursday afternoon while fire crews battled a blaze that started in the attic area. Elim Campus Pastor David Juve told KFGO radio that state officials will coordinate the eventual move of the displaced residents to temporary facilities.

The fire at the Elim Rehab and Care Center was called in about 3:15 p.m.. Witnesses say flames were shooting from the roof and smoke could be seen from several blocks away.

Authorities say natural gas fed the flames until the gas was shut off. Fargo Fire Chief Steve Dirksen credited a sprinkler system and fire doors for helping to contain the fire.

The investigation into the fire could take some time, Dirksen said.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Geneva, NY – Fire sprinklers help extinguish fire inside Walmart

A fire broke out at the service center of a Walmart supercenter in Geneva Wednesday afternoon.

Employees were evacuated and traffic was redirected at the intersection of Routes 5 and 20 and Berry Fields Road by Geneva Fire Department.

White Springs Fire Association responded, with assistance from Geneva Fire, the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office and Emergency Services along with Finger Lakes Ambulance.

Walmart employees were not permitted to comment and referred press inquiries to the company’s public relations hotline.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

The White Springs Fire Chief says a call came in at around 12:30 p.m., and some employees reported flames up to the ceiling in certain sections of the store.

A second alarm was called after firefighters arrived on the scene.

Firefighters say the sprinkler system activated, and extinguished a majority of the fire.

There was heavy smoke and fire damage to the building.

Residence Hall/Dormitory, Residential

New Haven, CT – Fire sprinklers extinguish fire in Yale dorm room started by lit candle; No injuries reported

A small fire broke out in a student dorm room in Pauli Murray College Monday afternoon, with subsequent water damage affecting the buttery, the college’s student meeting room, the dining hall loading dock and two student suites. No students, faculty or staff members were injured.

The fire — which began from a lit candle — broke out in Entryway E around 2:50 p.m. Alarms sounded throughout the college as the sprinkler system put out the fire before firefighters entered the building. The water in the suite, which was on the second floor, leaked down into the suite below it and then into the elevator shaft, causing damage in the basement.

Head of College Tina Lu sent out an email to Pauli Murray students approximately two hours later, explaining that nobody was hurt and informing students about the damage. She also emphasized the rule against candles in undergraduate dorm rooms.

“Candles are dangerous,” Lu told the News. “And the takeaway is that the undergraduate regulations, that particular one, is there for a very good reason. We all grew up with candles, but in this communal living environment, they’re dangerous, and they caused a lot of damage.”

Lu did not specifically elaborate on how the fire started, citing that she wanted to protect the privacy of the student. However, she did mention the danger of having a candle lit with the window open on a windy day, as wind can carry the fire.

She said that while she was not on campus when the fire broke out, she returned when the firemen arrived and later did a walkthrough of the college with the fire marshal to survey the damage. Excluding the student’s suite, all of the damage to the college is water-related, and the facilities staff have already begun repairing the college’s property.

“All [the repairs] are taking place right now, but in a building that is this complicated, it’s a bunch of different moving parts,” Lu said. “We are working hard to make sure that it’s as fast as possible.”

Casey Ramsey ’20, who lives in the suite below the room in which the fire started, told the News that he and his suitemate have been temporarily relocated to a different entryway due to water damage. None of their items were damaged, but there is a crack in their ceiling that was leaking water, he explained. Firefighters discovered an inch of water in the walls of the hallway outside their room, according to Ramsey.

Ramsey was in his room at the time of the fire but said he did not think that the alarm was serious. He only left when his friend texted him that the fire was directly above him, he said. After the fire was extinguished, firemen and the fire marshal examined his suite and decided that he should move as a precaution so that adequate repairs could be made.

“It’s not an ideal situation, but it’s not unpleasant,” Ramsey said. “At least we got to stay in Murray, and we got to keep our own rooms and have our own space still, and it’s not too far.”

Shira Minsk ’23 lives in the same hallway as Ramsey, but her suite did not suffer any water damage. However, there was a small leak in the hallway outside her room, which had stopped by Tuesday morning.

Minsk, like Ramsey, was in her room at the time of the fire. She recalls at least two other times this year that the fire alarm has gone off in her entryway, both of which turned out to be false alarms or fire drills. So, when she heard the alarm this time, she said she put in her headphones and continued to study. She added that she only left the building when one of her friends who lives down the hall informed her that there were firefighters coming. Once outside, she saw smoke coming out of a second-floor window and then saw water from the sprinklers.

“I totally think it could have happened to anyone … Lots of people I know in Murray light candles,” Minsk said.

Pauli Murray College is located at 130 Prospect Street.

Apartment Building, Residential

Katy, TX – (no media coverage) Apartment kitchen fire extinguished by fire sprinkler

FD stated that they were dispatched to an apartment fire and upon arrival they found a sprinkler controlled kitchen fire. They said prior to their arrival a Willowfork FD chief had arrived to active fire and water flow alarms, entered the apartment and found the fire extinguished by the automatic sprinkler system. There was minor water damage throughout the apartment but minimal fire damage. The occupant who rents the apartment and lives there with her daughter said that she was home heating a pot of cooking oil in preparation to make some fried chicken. The pot was unattended at times while heating. At some point she stepped out of the apartment. When she re-entered the apartment she saw the black smoke coming from the kitchen. Upon investigation she found the pot of oil had ignited. She placed a kitchen towel over the fire, located her daughter, left the apartment and called 911.