Tag Archives: Afternoon (12pm-6pm)

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Champaign, IL – Potentially dangerous laboratory fire held in check by sprinkler system

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

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

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.

Apartment Building, Residential

Red Wing, MN – Apartment fire on seventh floor extinguished by sprinkler system

Jordan Towers 1 in Red Wing was damaged early Sunday afternoon by a fire, and water that put it out.

The Red Wing Fire Department said the fire alarm was reported at 12:48 p.m. When firefighters arrived two minutes later, they learned the fire was on the seventh floor. The found a stove fire that had gone into a wall had been put out by the sprinkler system.

Fire damage was minimal but water has to be removed from several floors. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

 

Apartment Building, Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Franklin, OH – Fire at low-income senior apartment building extinguished by sprinkler system

Emergency crews were summoned to Meadow Crossing, 825 Central Ave. for a possible fire about 12:40 p.m. requiring the evacuation of residents from the building’s second floor, according to the Warren County Communications Center. a senior apartment building in Carlisle for a reported fire.

“It sounded a lot worse that it really was,” said Carlisle Fire Chief Krista Wyatt. “The sprinklers did their job.” The fire had been put out and firefighters worked to clear the building of smoke and look for any extensions of the fire.

Wyatt said the side laminate veneer of the bathroom’s vanity created enough heat to set off the fire sprinklers. She said two to three apartments received some smoke or water damage in addition to the bathroom’s vanity.

There are 36 one-bedroom apartments for elderly residents who earn 50 percent or below the regional median income. The building is owned by Warren County Community Services and it received a score of 97 out of 100 on its 2014 inspection by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Residential, Townhouse / Condominium

Branson, MO – Sprinkler system helps contain condominium fire

A Branson-area condominium was evacuated Saturday afternoon after flames broke out in one unit. According to the Southern Stone County Fire Protection District, crews were dispatched to the fire at 21 Stillwaters Trail in Indian Point just before 2:30 p.m. Officials say an Indian Point police officer who first arrived on scene and a maintenance worker extinguished the flames.

Crews say someone left a plastic cooler on an electric stove, which started the blaze. “This could have been bad. This is a large building with numerous tourists. The fire sprinkler activated with audible alarms. The alarm company notified us and everyone is safe,” stated Fire Marshal Jim Harding. Nobody was in the unit when the fire broke out. Both the Indian Point officer and maintenance worker were evaluated on scene by Taney County Ambulance for smoke inhalation.  No other injuries were reported.

Apartment Building, Residential

Harrisburg, PA – Single sprinkler keeps apartment fire from spreading

A single fire sprinkler kept a kitchen blaze from spreading through a Harrisburg apartment complex on Monday night, city fire Chief Brian Enterline said. Crews responded to a building fire call in the 200 block of Mary Street at about 5:08 p.m. and found smoke pouring from a second-floor apartment.

However, firefighters found that a fire sprinkler head, which activates when the temperature reaches 155 degrees, quickly extinguished the blaze and stopped it from spreading to adjoining apartments, Enterline said. No one was injured, and Enterline credited the sprinkler for preventing what he called “catastrophic consequences.”

Firefighters used a ventilation fan and a wet/dry vacuum to help clean up the damage. Two apartments took on water damage and apartment management is assisting residents displaced by the fire. Affected residents should be able to return to their apartments by the end of the week, Enterline said.

“This fire could have had catastrophic consequences to both lives and property had it not been for the fast work of a single operating fire sprinkler head, which quickly contained and extinguished the fire,” Enterline said. “Firefighters were able to literally fight this fire with a fan and mop bucket.”

Apartment Building, Residential

Wilmington, NC – Sprinkler system contains apartment fire to kitchen; No injuries

Wilmington Fire Department crews responded to an apartment fire located at 106 N. Water St around 2:45 p.m. Saturday. Battalion Chief Chris Nelson said a sprinkler system located in the apartment controlled the fire, keeping it contained to the kitchen where the fire started, until firefighters arrived on scene.

The occupant was home at the time, but no one was injured. A total of seven trucks responded as well as units from NHRMC EMS and Wilmington Police Department.  Nelson said there was minimal fire damage to the apartment and some water damage to apartments below where the fire started.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

York, PA – Machine fire at metal component manufacturer controlled by sprinkler system

Smoke puffed out of the Gamlet Incorporated building on Tuesday after a machine caught on fire at the business.  York City Assistant Fire Chief Chad Deardorff said the sprinkler system in the building controlled the fire.  Deardorff said the cause of and damage from the fire has not yet been determined.  No inuries were reported.

Apartment Building, Residential

St. Catharines, ON, Canada – Sprinklers activate during fire at 7-story apartment building

Firefighters evacuated the seven-floor apartment building at 5 Louis Ave. Tuesday after a blaze broke out on the fifth floor.

About 200 residents were forced from their homes for about six hours until the building was considered safe to re-enter.

“There was a lot of smoke that migrated throughout the building — so it had to be ventilated,” Deputy Fire Chief Larry Jones said. “We had to make sure all the units were safe.

“We went floor by floor with our air monitoring equipment and kept the fans going until we had zero readings.”

The Salvation Army and Red Cross provided the residents with sandwiches and coffee. Two buses from the City of St. Catharines were used as shelter. The Humane Society also attended, to assist with the pets of the residents.

Some tenants from the fifth floor will have to wait to re-occupy their units, Jones said. The Red Cross is helping them.

“Once we are finished our investigation, cleanup will commence,” Jones said. “The cleanup will focus on getting the displaced tenants back first. I can’t imagine it will be too long. There was some water damage to the floors. We had to isolate part of the sprinkler system so that will have to be repaired. They will have to deodorize and clean the walls. The units — for the most part — are fine.