Apartment Building, Residential Wichita, KS – Sprinkler system keeps fire at apartment complex from spreading August 27, 2015 viking210 1 Comment Fire crews have knocked out a fire at an apartment complex in Wichita. The fire started around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday at an apartment complex located at 324 N. Emporia. Fire crews say the sprinkler system helped get the fire out and keep it from spreading. Upon arrival, fire crews discovered the fire on 3rd floor of the building. Residents had self-evacuated. So far, there is no cause of fire. Some residents are being displaced and Westar Enegry is also shutting down power for time being as well.
College/University (on campus), School / University Bellingham, WA – Sprinklers put out fire in chemistry building at Western Washington University August 27, 2015 viking210 A chemical fire erupted in a Western Washington University chemistry building on Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 25. No one was injured, and the building was evacuated right after the fire broke out about 5:15 p.m., said WWU spokesman Paul Cocke. Student Melany Fry was in room 370 of Morse Hall with six other students when the fire broke out. “We heard a big bang and a whoosh,” Fry said. Fry said the fire started by a dry-solvent pump, which keeps water out of solvents. She didn’t think anybody was working with that pump at the time. The flames were initially about 15 feet high, Fry said. All of the students got out quickly while somebody else tried putting the fire out with an extinguisher. Firefighters responded and saw a plume coming from the building. They set up a perimeter far from the building to keep everyone away as they tried to determine what chemicals were involved. The building’s sprinklers put out the fire. Firefighters broke out windows to ventilate the building, and conducted a search for anyone who might still be inside, though the building had been cleared. They later ordered an evacuation of the nearby biology building. A hazardous materials team was brought in to examine the lab and ensure the scene was safe. Jared Chang, another WWU student who was in the building at the time, described the chemicals the students were working with as “a bunch of nasty, organic solvents that you don’t want on fire.” What caused the fire was under investigation Tuesday evening. No immediate damage estimate was available.
Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Mishawaka, IN – Factory fire extinguished by sprinkler system August 26, 2015 viking210 Mishawaka firefighters are crediting a sprinkler system for extinguishing a fire at a factory Tuesday afternoon. Crews were called to Sampson Fiberglass in the 2400 block of Home Street around 3 p.m. One worker suffered minor smoke inhalation, but did not seek medical treatment at the scene. Dispatch did confirm, however, that one patient was later transported to the hospital nearly two hours after the incident. A fire investigator is on the scene searching for what started the fire.
Apartment Building, Residential Rapid City, SD – Sprinkler stops fire on apartment balcony from spreading into unit August 25, 2015 viking210 A Saturday fire that started on an apartment unit’s balcony was stopped almost completely before it entered the unit, thanks to a sprinkler that activated in a bedroom. According to a press release from the Rapid City Fire Department, at 12:34 p.m. Saturday, firefighters went to the Homestead Garden Apartments at 4831 Homestead St. Everything on the balcony was damaged, the release said, the windows between the balcony and bedroom were broken, and the window blinds were melted. But the sprinkler in the bedroom doused the fire before it could cause more damage, and there were no injuries. No cause had been determined as of late Monday afternoon.
Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant Valdosta, GA – Sprinkler system knocks down kitchen fire at restaurant August 19, 2015 viking210 Fire crews responded to a kitchen fire at the Beijing Cafe restaurant just before 12:00 noon on August 17, 2015. Fire crews say they arrived five minutes after the call came in at 11:39am, to find smoke and heavy fire in the kitchen area. They say some of the fire was knocked down by the activation of the sprinkler system. According to the Valdosta Fire Department, the 18 firefighters who arrived were able to contain the fire to the kitchen in just 12 minutes. No injuries were reported. Firefighters believe the fire was an accident and was caused by cooking.
Apartment Building, Residential Viera, FL – Sprinklers activate to help limit damage in apartment kitchen fire; No injuries August 17, 2015 viking210 One second floor apartment unit was damaged by smoke and fire and sprinkler water, and another was damaged by sprinkler water as part of a cooking fire that originated on a second floor structure at the Mission Bay apartment complex in Viera on Thursday afternoon, according to Brevard County Fire Rescue. Units from BCFR and the Rockledge Fire Department responded to a call just before 4:30 p.m. There were no injuries as a result of the fire, BCFR adds.
Storage / Warehouse, Warehouse Hampton, VA – Vehicle fire in warehouse held in check by sprinkler system August 14, 2015 viking210 A business caught fire in the Copeland Industrial Park this afternoon. The fire started in a warehouse around 2:30 p.m. in the 100 block of E St. after a vehicle’s engine went haywire, Hampton Division of Fire and Rescue Battalion Chief Anthony Chittum said in a news release. Firefighters got there and saw smoke coming from inside the warehouse and got reports that all employees had already evacuated, Chittum said. They went inside and discovered a commercial vehicle ablaze, with the fire spreading to nearby storage containers, he said. The building’s sprinkler system helped keep the fire in check, and firefighters extinguished it within 15 minutes, Chittum said. Investigators ruled the fire an accident after determining there was a mechanical failure in the vehicle’s engine, he said.
Office Building, Restaurant Fort Lauderdale, FL – Sprinklers activate, assist firefighters in extinguishing restaurant fire at downtown high rise August 14, 2015 viking210 2 Comments The Bank of America building in downtown Fort Lauderdale was evacuated Thursday after a fire broke out in a restaurant located inside the building. A Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue representative said the grease fire began on the first floor of the building inside the grill at Grille 401. He said firefighters could see black smoke coming from the restaurant upon arrival. “When crews arrived, they found heavy black smoke coming from the upper part of the parking garage,” Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Capt. Greg May said. “The sprinkler heads activated like they were supposed to, but the fire got in the duct system and traveled the length of the building which is several hundred feet.” “We looked out the side window here, and it was just covered in smoke,” Britny Alexander, who was inside the building at the time, said. All 23 floors of the building were evacuated for several hours. No injuries were reported. Firefighters said Grille 401 would be closed for the remainder of the day. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Apartment Building, Residential Dumfries, VA – Kitchen fire extinguished by apartment’s sprinkler system August 13, 2015 viking210 A sprinkler system put out a fire that broke out in the kitchen of a Dumfries apartment Wednesday afternoon, causing about $5,000 in damage. There were no injuries reported in the blaze, but a building inspector posted two units in the complex as unsafe, according to the Prince William County fire department. At about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, fire and rescue crews were dispatched to the fire at a row of apartments in the 17000 block of Islip Loop in Dumfries, the fire department said. As they entered the complex, they went to the kitchen of the unit where the fire originated. They saw that the apartment’s sprinkler system had been activated, suppressing and extinguishing the fire, the department said. Smoke remained throughout the unit with minor fire damage. The Prince William Fire Marshal’s Office determined that the fire originated on the kitchen stove, and it was accidental.
Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential Townshend, VT – Sprinklers help control attic fire at assisted living facility August 5, 2015 viking210 Valley Cares was evacuated Monday evening after a lightning strike caused a fire in the attic of the assisted living facility. Just after 5 p.m. 39 residents were transported down the road to Leland & Gray Union High School after the fire alarm and sprinkler system alerted staff to the fire in the attic. Valley Cares Executive Director Susanne Shapiro said she did not know the condition of the building, though she said the facility would remain closed until a safety inspector could tour the damaged section of the building Tuesday. “Everybody is safe. The staff did exactly what they were trained to do,” Shapiro said. “Most of our residents are able to go home with family, and for anyone who can not go home, we will find a place for them to stay tonight.” Townshend Volunteer Fire Department Safety Officer Dale West said the call came in just after 5 p.m., and the blaze was quickly toned to a three-alarm fire due to the large number of residents who had to be evacuated. West said the sprinkler system helped control the fire and it was quickly extinguished. A portion of the building did sustain significant water damage and West said a state safety inspector would walk through the structure Tuesday before anyone would be allowed back into their apartments. “It could have been much worse,” West said. “It’s always hard to get to a fire in an attic, but the sprinkler system saved the day and they’re going to have to start cleaning up tomorrow.”
