Tag Archives: Afternoon (12pm-6pm)

Residence Hall/Dormitory, Residential

Hibbing, MN – Kitchen fire at community college dormitory suppressed by sprinkler system

A dorm at the Hibbing Community College was evacuated Thursday due to a grease fire in one of the rooms.  A student was reportedly cooking with oil on the stove when the pan caught fire around 4 p.m.  When the fire wouldn’t burn out, the student placed the pan in the shower.   Authorities say when water hit the oil there was a flash grease fire which set off the sprinkler system in the bathroom, suppressing the fire.

The student received minor burns to his left hand and was treated and released from the Hibbing Hospital.  The building sustained smoke and water damage estimated at $10,000.

From 2009-2013 U.S. fire departments responded to almost 4,000 dormitory fires and 86% of them were kitchen fires, according to the Hibbing Fire Department.  Fire crews are reminding people make sure to use a tight fitting lid when cooking with oil and to remember to never pour water on a grease fire.

Apartment Building, Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential, Residential High Rise

Fall River, MA – Sprinklers extinguish fire on 6th floor of apartment building with over 100 elderly and disabled residents; No injuries

An early-evening fire sent elderly and disabled residents of Borden Place West, 181 S. Main St., out of their apartments. The fire started around 5:30 p.m. in the trash compactor, according to Fall River District Fire Chief Douglas Sullivan. The exact cause was being investigated, but Sullivan said it appeared accidental.  The sprinkler went on in the trash compactor and extinguished the fire.

“The system worked the way that it should have,” Sullivan said. “The fire was contained.”

Wendy Carvalho, who acts as the fire warden on the sixth floor where she resides, said someone may have dropped an ashtray or cigarette into the trash chute “I knocked on everyone’s door,” Carvalho said. “They all came out.”

Most of the 100-plus residents in the building are elderly or disabled, with many using walkers and in wheelchairs. Heavy smoke hung in the hallways even after the fire was extinguished, and many residents sat outside waiting to get back into their apartments. Other residents were inside the community room on the street level, and out of harm’s way.

Resident Joseph Blanchard, who has lived in the building for 25 years, said it wasn’t the first fire at Borden West, but it was the worst. “There was really a lot of smoke,” Blanchard said.

Sullivan said Borden West owner Peabody Properties called in professional cleaners to remove the excess water from the apartments that were flooded on the first floor. All residents were allowed back inside within a couple of hours.

No residents were injured. One firefighter fell and injured his shoulder but was able to continue working. Responding to the fire were four engines, two ladder trucks, Rescue No. 1, Special Services, and Fall River police.

Apartment Building, Residential

Hartford, CT – Apartment fire put out by sprinkler system; No injuries

A small fire in a kitchen at 76 Pliny St. was put out by sprinklers last Thursday evening, fire officials said. Firefighters found out about the fire about 4:40 PM and found the fire in one of the apartment’s kitchen, Capt. Ted Kolosky said.

The building was evacuated and no one was injured. The fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.

Apartment Building, Residential

Rochester, MN – Fire officials credit sprinkler system in extinguishing apartment blaze

Officials with the Rochester Fire Department are crediting a “sprinkler save” with extinguishing a fire inside an unoccupied apartment Thursday evening. Firefighters were sent at 5:54 p.m. to 2804 Second St. SW in response to a sprinkler alarm — sent by facilities when the sprinklers have been activated.

When they arrived, the apartment was full of smoke, said Deputy Chief Vance Swisher, but the flames had already been extinguished, thanks to the sprinklers. A preliminary investigation indicates a lamp that had been left on fell onto some combustible materials in a children’s bedroom, he said. The ensuing fire activated two sprinkler heads, putting out the fire before it could spread.

“It could have been a significantly larger fire,” Swisher said, “and certainly done more damage to the building.” The residents of that apartment were unable to stay there because of the water damage, he said, and the apartment below it may have sustained some damage, too.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

West Hazleton, PA – Sprinklers assist firefighters in extinguishing fire at manufacturing plant; No injuries

Firefighters from multiple companies responded to a fire alarm at a plant in Valmont Industrial Park in West Hazleton on Sunday afternoon. Firefighters and the plant’s sprinkler system extinguished the fire, which spread to the roof, Cara said. Crews could be found walking on the building’s roof after accessing it from a ladder truck.

Smoke rolled off the roof at Greif Brothers, 95 Jaycee Drive, and was visible for a time from Route 93 after firefighters were dispatched there around 4:30 p.m. The smoke began to dissipate and finally disappeared from outside view by about 5 p.m.

Deputy Fire Chief Brian Cara said crews spotted the smoke upon arrival after being dispatched to the facility by Luzerne County 911 for an activated fire alarm and found a fire in a hopper holding polystyrene.

Cara said firefighters ventilated the building and found the fire didn’t extend elsewhere. Damages amounted to mostly smoke and water, Cara said. He expected the damage would “cause little change” in Greif Brothers operations.

No injuries were reported. Employees were at work when the fire broke out and evacuated, he said.

Cara said multiple fire companies were called to respond as a precaution. With commercial buildings, Cara said, it’s difficult to predict how quickly and where the fire will spread.

Firefighters from Hazleton, Valley Regional, Freeland, McAdoo, Hazle Township and Mahanoy City responded, as did utility companies PPL and UGI. American Patient Transport Systems Inc. also responded, as did fire police to direct traffic.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Summerside, PE, Canada – Fire at elementary school extinguished by sprinkler system; Classes resume next day

Most classes at Elm Street Elementary School in Summerside, P.E.I., will resume on Tuesday after a small fire forced the cancellation of all classes on Monday. The fire started near a ventilation fan in the computer server room at about 4:30 p.m. local time Sunday.

Summerside fire Chief Jim Peters said the sprinkler system had put out the fire by the time firefighters arrived. “It was just a matter of us, the firefighters, shutting down the sprinkler system and clearing some smoke,” said Peters.

Shutting down the sprinklers, however, took about 30 minutes, said English Language School Board superintendent Cynthia Fleet. The water soaked through the floor and ran into classrooms below, including the kindergarten.

Because of the water damage, kindergarten will be cancelled again Tuesday. All other classes will go ahead Tuesday as usual. Kindergarten classes will resume Wednesday, with changes for one classroom.

“Tomorrow, we will have teachers with workers from the school board move furniture and materials back into two classrooms, and a third classroom will be relocated into the breakfast area,” Fleet said.

“So that is why the breakfast program will not be in operation for the remainder of the week.”

Communications at the school will be by telephone only until the computer system is restored.

Apartment Building, Residential, Residential High Rise

North Adams, MA – Cooking fire in 7th floor apartment quickly put out by sprinkler system

Firefighters evacuated some residents from the high rise on Friday afternoon after a small cooking fire broke out on the 7th floor. Fire Director Stephen Meranti said the fire was quickly put out by the sprinkler system.

“Right now we are evacuating because of smoke and water. We do have water all the way from the seventh floor all the way down,” Meranti said. “We are checking apartments as we go down through, but the sprinkler system did its job.”  Meranti said no one was injured.

The Fire Department was alerted to the situation at about 12:30 p.m., when an alarm was activated in a unit at the Ashland Park Apartments. Scanner reports indicated water was “pouring down the hallways” in the Housing Authority building.

Residents clustered in the community room on the ground floor until being allowed back into their homes. Executive Director Jennifer Hohn said a few units below the seventh-floor apartment were affected.

“A significant amount of water from the sprinklers has entered the units directly below on all floors,” she said. “As a result of water seeping into electrical panels, power to these affected units has been shut off.”

Hohn said the Holiday Inn was gracious to offer accommodations and a meal for those residents affected by the fire and its containment.

 

“There is a chance the power will not be restored by the evening so I have reserved a block of rooms at the Holiday Inn for anybody needing accommodations,” she said. “I will update the board when a further assessment of the damage is concluded.

 

“The important thing is nobody was injured.”

 

Police and North Adams Ambulance Service also responded; Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts Police assisted with traffic control as Ashland Street was restricted to one lane.

 

The incident is under investigation.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Red Oak, TX – No injuries at Comfort Inn as sprinkler system contains fire to room of origin

No injuries are reported after a small fire Monday left behind smoke and water damage at a Red Oak hotel. Guests and employees evacuated the Comfort Inn, located in the 400 block of North Interstate 35 East Service Road, after the fire alarm sounded at about 1:21 p.m., according to Red Oak fire officials.

The source of the fire was located in a housekeeping room, officials said, and the internal fire sprinkler system contained the fire to that room. Red Oak police rerouted traffic from the service road onto I-35E while fire crews worked at the scene.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Thunder Bay, ON, Canada – Fire at Bombardier plant controlled by sprinkler system; No injuries

Thunder Bay’s Bombardier plant was forced to evacuate its employees Wednesday afternoon, after a fire broke out inside the facility. The call came in at around 3 p.m.. Thunder Bay fire crews rushed to the plant on Montreal Street, after reports of a structural fire. As it turns out the fire was contained to a piece of equipment. The plant’s sprinkler system was activated and Bombardier staff apparently had the fire out before fire crews arrived.

Hundreds of employees were evacuated as a precautionary measure. There’s no word on how much damage was done to the equipment in the area where the fire started.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Duluth, GA – Sprinkler system saves strip mall from damage in fire; No injuries

A small fire at a strip shopping center undergoing construction in Duluth caused minimal damage Wednesday afternoon, thanks to an automatic sprinkler system.

Firefighters responded around 4:48 p.m. to a report of a fire at the shopping center in the 3940 block of Buford Highway, according to Capt. Tommy Rutledge, public information officer for the Gwinnett County fire department.

Crews arrived to find light smoke and the sprinkler system activated. They discovered a small fire in an unoccupied store suite that was had already been extinguished by the sprinklers.

The fire caused minimal damage, as the suite was vacant at the time and no contents were involved. The fire appears accidental and was sparked by a floor compound during construction work. There were no injuries reported and no damage to the structure, Rutledge said.