Athletic Club/Sports Facility Madison, WI – Fire on 5th floor of YWCA building controlled by sprinkler system June 11, 2015 viking210 The City of Madison Fire Department is crediting an automatic sprinkler system for helping avoid major damage after a fire at the YWCA on Wednesday. Officials say the fire started on the fifth floor of the building located at 101 E. Mifflin Street around 1:15 p.m. Firefighters say there was heavy smoke conditions reported on the fourth and fifth floors after using high-rise firefighting operations. They were able to successfully extinguish the fire, keeping the water and fire damage to a minimum. The fire department says the YWCA staff followed all proper procedures upon hearing the fire alarms. They say everyone was evacuated safely and uninjured. Damage is estimated at $5,000-$10,000. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Storage / Warehouse, Warehouse Modesto, CA – Sprinklers help contain fire in warehouse containing fireworks, almonds June 8, 2015 viking210 Fire crews were able to contain a fire at a warehouse that contains walnuts and fireworks in unincorporated Modesto, officials said. Firefighters were called to the large warehouse in the 2300 block of Tenaya Street just after noon Sunday, the Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District said. The building’s automatic sprinkler system was activated and helped partially control the flames from spreading. When crews arrived, they saw smoke coming off the roof of the building and called for additional help. The east end of the warehouse was full of large bins of ground walnuts while the west end was full of fireworks. A firewall separated the fireworks and burning hulls of walnuts. Nearly 30 firefighters with the fire district and the Modesto and Ceres fire departments were called to the warehouse to battle the blaze. No injuries were reported.
Residential, Single Family Home Petaluma, CA – Sprinkler controls fire in home under construction; Protective cap still in place June 5, 2015 viking210 A blaze that broke out Thursday inside a three-story home under construction northwest of Petaluma could have been much worse had a sprinkler system not activated and limited the fire’s spread, a fire official said. “Under different circumstances, it could have been a much larger fire,” said Rancho Adobe Fire Battalion Chief Mike Weihman. The blaze at 3528 Skillman Lane was reported at about 5:55 p.m. by a neighbor who spotted smoke billowing from the unfinished house. Weihman said the fire broke out in a first-floor room at the rear of the structure that was being used by construction workers. The room also had an overhead fire sprinkler that activated despite being so new that it still had a dust cover over it. Weihman said water from the sprinkler doused most of the flames, greatly assisting firefighters, who brought the blaze under control within 20 minutes of their arrival on scene. Weihman said the blaze appeared to be accidental. He said investigators were trying to determine the cause, but that they ruled out electrical equipment that was stored in the room. Firefighters from Petaluma, Cal Fire, Wilmar and the Coast Guard station responded to the blaze.
Apartment Building, Residential Temple, TX – Sprinklers stop spread of apartment fire caused by rechargeable battery May 28, 2015 viking210 Investigators say a rechargeable battery for a radio controlled model airplane is what started a fire at a Temple apartment Tuesday afternoon. Temple Fire & Rescue crews responded to a fire call at about 3 p.m. at Pecan Pointe Apartments. Firefighters saw smoke coming from the apartment, and were able to quickly locate the flames and extinguish them. Firefighters credit the building’s fire sprinkler system with limiting the fire damage to the one apartment, which received a little fire damage, along with moderate smoke and water damage. One downstairs apartment also received water damage. No injuries were reported, but the fire displaced two families. The apartment is making arrangements to house those families. The fire, which was under control by 3:21 p.m., was ruled unintentional. Investigators say a rechargeable battery for a radio controlled model airplane is what started the blaze. Temple PD and Scott & White EMS also responded to the call.
Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Redding, CA – Sprinklers keep fire from spreading at manufacturing plant May 26, 2015 viking210 A fire in a tank of detergent was doused Sunday by the sprinkler system at a Redding manufacturing plant, a Redding Fire Department official said. Shortly after 5 p.m. a fire alarm went off at Seco Manufacturing on Oasis Road, Battalion Chief Steve Reilly said. The fire alarm was activated by a fire in a tank of detergent used in a process to anodize aluminum that is used to make surveying equipment, he said. A fire sprinkler turned on above the tank, keeping the fire from spreading, he said. Shortly after the fire broke out, firefighters with Redding’s Engine Co. No. 6, which is across the street from the plant, heard the fire alarm and saw a light smoke coming from the rear of the business, Reilly said. The firefighters got access to the rear of the building and were able to put it out by about 5:30 p.m., Reilly said. The business was closed for the Memorial Day weekend. The fire was confined to the tank, he said. He said the fire was caused by a malfunction in how the tank operates.
Other - Residential, Residential St. Cloud, MN – Fire at veterans home contained by sprinkler system May 26, 2015 viking210 The St. Cloud Fire Department received a report of a fire at about 3:08 p.m. at a St. Cloud veterans home on the 800 block of 8th Avenue South. When firefighters arrived, the sprinkler system in the building had largely contained the fire. Authorities said the fire likely started because of a cigarette that was left on a mattress in one of the rooms. The residents affected by the fire were moved to different rooms within the facility until the clean-up can be finished. Fire officials said there were no injuries in the incident, but the facility suffered about $1,000 in damage.
Other Business, Recycling / Waste Facility Charleston, SC – Sprinklers help contain fire at recycling plant May 21, 2015 viking210 Firefighters from North Charleston, Charleston and Boeing worked Tuesday to put out a large fire at Sonoco Recycling plant. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, according to North Charleston Fire Department spokeswoman Bianca Bourbeau. Bourbeau said the sprinkler system in the building contained the fire where it started, but outside flames spread to outlying bales of recycled material. Sonoco spokesman Brian Risinger said that he was grateful there were no injuries and he appreciated fire crews’ quick response at 2025 Tellico Road. “At the time of this statement we understand the fire to be contained to a specific area of the facility and the fire department remains onsite and is making progress on extinguishing the fire,” he stated. “The only damage we are aware of is to our own facility.” He added that the blaze would not interrupt ongoing recycling services in the area and that operations were expected to resume by the end of business Wednesday. Sonoco was founded in 1899 and is a global provider of consumer packaging, industrial products, protective packaging and displays and packaging supply chain services, according to a media release.
Other / Not Specified, Other Business Champaign, IL – Potentially dangerous laboratory fire held in check by sprinkler system May 19, 2015 viking210 The fire marshal said the cause of a fire in a research building on Champaign’s north side was accidental. John Koller said firefighters were called to Obiter Research, 2809 Gemini Court, at 3:07 p.m. Monday. The company specializes in custom contract chemical research and manufacturing of difficult or complex chemical compounds. “When we got to the building, there wasn’t any fire showing,” Koller said. “The sprinkler system kept the fire in check. We soon found a small amount of fire and mostly smoke.” Koller said the smoke was limited to one lab room that was walled off from the rest of the building. “There was an alcohol-based substance in the lab that a spark got to and ignited it,” he said. He said firefighters had the blaze under control within minutes. “There was no structural damage to the building,” he said. All employees were evacuated. “We had worked with them on an emergency plan in the past, and the employees effectively carried it out,” Koller said. According to Koller, one man who was in the room where the spark ignited was “shaken up” and checked by paramedics at the scene, but the man did not need to go to the hospital. No firefighters were injured, he said.
Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential, Residential High Rise San Diego, CA – Sprinklers help contain blaze at senior residential high-rise; No injuries May 19, 2015 viking210 A fire of unknown origin erupted in a City Heights senior-housing high-rise Monday afternoon. The non-injury blaze began spreading on the seventh floor of the 10-story building in the 4100 block of 42nd Street about 2:45 p.m., according to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department. It took crews about a half-hour to extinguish the flames, which appeared to have originated on or near an outdoor deck, SDFRD Capt. Joe Amador said. A built-in fire sprinkler helped keep the blaze from rapidly spreading prior to the arrival of emergency personnel, he said. Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the unit where it originated, though several nearby ones sustained smoke and heat damage, according to Amador. Authorities evacuated about 70 people from the building and directed others to remain in their apartments for a time as a precaution. The American Red Cross was called in to help arrange interim lodging for those unable to return to their residences immediately.
Other / Not Specified, Other Business Glen Ellyn, IL – Fire in maintenance building at golf course extinguished by sprinkler system May 18, 2015 viking210 A working sprinkler system is credited for preventing further damage at the Village Links Golf Course following a fire on Saturday. FIrefighters responded to the maintenance building at the golf course, which is owned and operated by the village of Glen Ellyn, at 12:37 p.m. on Saturday, according to a Glen Ellyn Volunteer Fire Company press release. When they arrived, they reported a light haze showing. The fire had already been extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system and was contained to the area where it started, according to the news release. No one was injured in the blaze. Damage costs are not currently available but fire officials reported minimal fire and water damage. There are 750 buildings in Glen Ellyn that are equipped with fire sprinklers. And there are currently over 500 new homes that added fire sprinklers since the village of Glen Ellyn passed a fire sprinkler ordinance, according to fire officials. In large structure fires, sprinklers operated 91 percent of the time and were effective in 87 percent of those fires, according to the National Fire Protection Association. “Nationwide, sprinklers are credited with saving countless lives and property,” according to the news release. The cause of the fire at the Village Links Golf Course, 485 Winchell Way, remains under investigation.
