Tag Archives: California

Other - Residential, Residential

Santa Barbara, CA – Electrical fire at homeless shelter extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

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A small fire at the Transition House homeless shelter in Santa Barbara was kept in check by fire sprinklers Tuesday evening, but the resulting water flow caused damage to the facility’s child-care area, according to the Santa Barbara City Fire Department.

A single engine crew responded shortly before 7 p.m. to the shelter at 421 E. Cota St. after the shelter’s fire alarms began ringing, said fire Battalion Chief Robert Mercado.

Initial investigation did not reveal any sign of a fire, Mercado said, but crews were unable to gain access to the building.

A few minutes later, they noticed water coming out the building, which indicated the fire sprinklers had activated, Mercado said, adding that light smoke was seen coming from one of the doors.

A full structure-fire response was then ordered, with additional engines and a truck dispatched to the scene.

“After gaining entrance to the building, we found that a small fire had been suppressed by the sprinkler system,” Mercado said. “The sprinklers did their job, and were able to keep the fire in check.”

Occupants on the second floor of the building were evacuated, but were later allowed to return.

A Santa Barbara City firefighter helps salvage water-soaked items from the child-care area at the Transition House homeless shelter on Tuesday evening following a small fire. (Peter Hartmann / Noozhawk photo)

An investigator found a small fire, likely electrical in nature, in the child-care area of the building, Mercado said.

“A lot of water got into the child-care for infants and toddlers,” Mercado said. “A lot of baby-related items and toys and play mats were soaked. It doesn’t like like they will be able to have children in there tomorrow.” 

He estimated the overall damage at less than $10,000.

No injuries were reported.

Residential, Single Family Home

Napa, CA – Sprinkler system activated for dryer fire in home

A family was displaced when a dryer caught fire in a home closet on the 200 block of Walnut Street Monday night, the Napa Fire Department reported.

The fire triggered a ceiling sprinkler. A resident emptied two dry chemical extinguishers on the blaze, which was reduced in size by the time a fire engine arrived less than four minutes later, the department said.

The residence sustained smoke and water damage that required the residents to find other quarters, Napa Fire said.

The cause of the dryer fire is under investigation. Most dryer fires involve lint build-up or dryer overloading, officials said.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

San Carlos, CA – Sprinkler system prevented fire from spreading in commercial building

San Mateo County Fire Department crews battled a 2-alarm fire at a commercial building in San Carlos early Tuesday morning, according to fire dispatch and reports.

The blaze was first reported at 6:01 a.m. at 642 Quarry Road in San Carlos. Redwood City fire crews also responded to the scene and reported on Twitter that the building’s sprinkler system prevented the fire from spreading further.

Crews said the cause of the fire was under investigation and additional information was not immediately available.

Restaurant

San Diego, CA – Arson fire at restaurant in Gaslamp District put out by sprinkler system

A 21-year-old Marine was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of starting a fire that resulted in $25,000 in damage a restaurant in the Gaslamp District, authorities said.  The blaze at Blue Point Coastal Cuisine at 565 Fifth Ave. near Market Street was reported around 1:45 a.m. and was quickly doused by the building’s sprinkler system, San Diego Fire-Rescue spokeswoman Monica Munoz said.

Investigators determined that the fire was started in the back of the restaurant, which was closed at the time, by an allegedly intoxicated man who was not an employee of the eatery, Munoz said. The suspect came in through an open door, started vandalizing the restaurant and set a few fires in the back, Munoz alleged.  Police identified the suspect as Austin Kokin, a Marine Corps corporal. He was arrested near the eatery and booked into the San Diego Central Jail on suspicion of burglary, arson, carrying a concealed dirk or dagger and vandalism, San Diego police public affairs Officer Billy Hernandez said.

Retail

Sonoma, CA – Overnight fire at nail salon quickly suppressed by sprinkler system

A blaze in a nail salon in downtown Sonoma was quickly extinguished, mostly by the salon’s sprinklers, on Monday night.  Fire crews responded to the fire in Nail Pro at 201 W. Napa St. around 10:45 p.m., according to Spencer Andreis, battalion chief with Sonoma Valley Fire & Rescue Authority.  “When we arrived, the business was charged with smoke. It was starting to come out the front door,” Andreis said. “Crews forced entry through the front door and went to the back of the business” where the fire was burning, he said.

“The sprinkler system did its job. It took a minimal amount of water to suppress the parts that were still on fire at that point,” Andreis said. The fire involved just one room in the back of the nail salon.  Water from the firefighting efforts leaked out of the attic and under the floors, damaging two adjacent businesses, Chinese restaurant Happy Garden, and a hair salon,

There were no injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation, Andreis said.  A fire broke out in the same nail salon two or three years ago, according to Andreis.  Heather Sarno, property manager of Crosspoint Realty Services, which manages the property, said it is usually the case that the insurer of an individual business must pay for fire damage, though “it depends on what the fire inspector determines to be the cause.”

Retail

Santa Maria, CA – Arson fire at discount store held in check by sprinkler system

Arson is suspected in a fire at the Fallas department store in Santa Maria Tuesday night that forced employees to flee and activated the store’s sprinkler system causing major damage to inventory.  The fire started just after 10:00 p.m. with Santa Maria firefighters arriving within minutes to find smoke billowing out of the roof of the building in the Town Center West shopping center.  Employees were working in the store at the time of the fire and managed to evacuate the building without injury.  Investigators believe the fire started on the second floor of the two-story building and by the time firefighters made it there, the building’s fire sprinkler system had activated.

“Fire sprinklers did keep the fire in check which allowed our crews to fully extinguish it”, said Santa Maria Fire Dept. Battalion Chief Mike Farmer, “we went into salvage and overhaul operations
after that to remove the smoke and lessen the water damage as much as we could.”

Water from the fire sprinklers damaged clothing, household goods and other items in the store which is expected to remain closed on Wednesday for the cleanup.

Investigators from the Santa Maria Fire Dept. and the Santa Maria Police Dept. are investigating the suspected arson fire.

Residential, Single Family Home

Napa, CA – Garage fire at home suppressed by automatic sprinkler system

Napa Fire responded at 3:30 p.m. Monday to a reported structure fire in a home at the corner of Maximilian Court and Jefferson Street in north Napa only that the fire, located in a detached garage, had been extinguished by an automatic sprinkler system before they arrived, Capt. Steve Becker said.  Damage was confined to a cluster of items in a corner of the garage, Becker said.  This is another example of an automatic sprinkler, mandatory in new construction in Napa since the 1980s, reducing fire loss, he said.

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Standard, CA – Fire at sawmill quickly contained by sprinkler system

A heavy amount of fire resources were dispatched to the Sierra Pacific Industries Standard Mill on Camage Avenue at 7:34am Tuesday for a report of a fire.  The first responders found that a chair had caught on fire and it activated a sprinkler system. The fire was quickly contained before firefighters arrived and most all of the resources were immediately released from the incident. No additional information is available.

 

Other - Retail, Retail

Mountain View, CA – Overnight fire at farmers market “mostly extinguished” by automatic sprinkler system

Sprouts Farmers Market on San Antonio Road had to shut down temporarily after a small fire ignited in one of the market’s refrigerators early Friday morning, July 6.  A passerby called 911 just before 4 a.m. to report that smoke was billowing out of the Sprouts building. Firefighters arrived shortly afterward to find heavy smoke inside the market, but the fire had already been mostly extinguished by the market’s sprinkler system. Fire officials say the building was unoccupied when they arrived, and they believe there were no injuries as a result of the fire.  The exact cause of the fire is still being investigated, and fire officials could not immediately give an estimate on the the cost of the damage.  Following the fire, Sprouts was required to close temporarily in order for Santa Clara County health inspectors to check on the extent of the smoke damage.  No estimate was given for when Sprouts will reopen.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Coronado, CA – Supermarket fire contained with help from sprinkler system

A smoky basement fire prompted the evacuation of a supermarket near Naval Air Station North Island Wednesday. Witnesses reported hearing an explosion, likely from an overloaded transformer, in an alley behind the Vons store in the 800 block of Orange Avenue in Coronado about 8:15 a.m., city spokeswoman Janine Zuniga said.

The building then began to fill with smoke, and its fire-sprinkler system activated. Emergency crews and store employees cleared everyone out of the building while firefighters extinguished the blaze, which caused no injuries.  San Diego Gas & Electric personnel turned off the power supply to the building and were investigating the mishap. “Right now, we aren’t sure if the transformer or (a) refrigeration unit caused the fire,” Coronado Fire Chief Jim Lydon said in the late morning.

The store was expected to remain indefinitely closed due to heavy smoke and water damage, and lack of electrical service. County health officials will assess the site before it is allowed to reopen to the public, Lydon said.