Tag Archives: California

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Seaside, CA – Sprinkler system keeps fire at In-N-Out Burger from spreading

A fire broke out at the new In-N-Out Burger restaurant in Seaside about 11 a.m. Sunday. Firefighters said someone threw oil in a trash can containing paper towels before the oil had enough time to cool down.  The restaurant is closed for the Easter holiday, so no one was inside when the fire started.

The restaurant’s emergency sprinkler system put out the fire and alerted the fire department. Restaurant officials have not said whether the business will be open Monday. The burger joint opened Tuesday

Apartment Building, Residential

La Mesa, CA – Car fire at apartment complex controlled with help from sprinkler system

A car fire at a La Mesa apartment complex was knocked down by a sprinkler system and quick work by firefighters before it could do any structural damage, Heartland fire officials said Saturday.

Firefighters from La Mesa, El Cajon and Cal Fire responded to the blaze shortly after 8 p.m. Friday at the Alterra Apartments in the 8700 block of Fletcher Parkway, according to Heartland Fire spokesman Sonny Saghera.

The fire sprinkler system was already activated when firefighters arrived within four minutes of being dispatched, Saghera said.

It took fire crews less than 10 minutes to get the car fire out and the sprinkler system off before any damage was done to the apartment units above the garage. There were no injuries, evacuations or water damage, and no damage to other vehicles. The cause and damage amount were not released by Heartland Fire.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Pinole, CA – Sprinkler system keeps fire at vacant restaurant from spreading to other businesses

Commercial structures worth $4 million sustained only $75,000 in damage from a Friday morning fire in Pinole, according to the Pinole Fire Department.

The fire was reported at 8:09 a.m. at 1570 Fitzgerald Drive at a recently closed HomeTown Buffet restaurant. The restaurant is part of a larger structure consisting of a Big 5 Sporting Goods store and an adjoining strip mall.

When firefighters arrived, they found the restaurant’s sprinkler system on and smoke coming from the attic, fire officials said. Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the parapet area of the roof. They also ensured that water did not damage the sporting goods store’s merchandise.

Fire officials said the cause of the fire was an electrical short. The short occurred where electrical work had been done to remove the restaurant’s sign.  No one was injured and none of the other businesses sustained damage by fire or water.

Big 5 Sporting Goods opened a couple of hours late as electricity had to be shut off as firefighters extinguished the fire, according to fire officials

Residential, Single Family Home

Napa, CA – Residential sprinkler system suppresses garage fire; No injuries reported

A smoke alarm and sprinkler system helped to snuff out a fire that broke out in a north Napa home Saturday night, according to firefighters.

Napa Fire was sent to the 2000 block of Trower Avenue at 11:15 p.m. after reports that a garage was on fire, Capt. Ty Becerra reported. The first of three fire units to arrive at the home saw light smoke coming from the garage, and firefighters found an ashtray inside the garage that had ignited combustible chemicals, according to Becerra. 

The homeowner, who had been in the garage that evening before going to bed, was awakened by a smoke alarm, took his wife and an infant outside and called 911. As firefighters were arriving, a sprinkler head activated in the garage and suppressed the flames, Becerra said. 

Fire crews stayed for about 45 minutes to help the homeowner clear out the remaining combustibles and control the sprinkler flow, according to Becerra. No injuries to the family or firefighters were reported.

A damage estimate was not immediately available, but Becerra said damage appeared to be limited to items inside the garage.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Desert Hot Springs, CA – Sprinkler system holds back attic fire at Castañeda’s restaurant

Riverside County firefighters responded to a fire at Castañeda’s restaurant in Desert Hot Springs Thursday.

At around 2:29 p.m., CalFire received a report of an active fire alarm and a smell of smoke at the restaurant, which is in the 13-900 block of Palm Drive.

First responders to the fire reported nothing showing from the exterior, but upon further inspection found a fire in the attic of the building, according to CalFire. The fire was being held back by a sprinkler system.

Firefighters were able to contain the fire by around 3 p.m., according to CalFire.

No one was hurt in the fire.

Storage / Warehouse, Warehouse

San Leandro, CA – Fire at warehouse with polystyrene foam contained with help from sprinklers

Firefighters contained a 1-alarm blaze to a warehouse in San Leandro Wednesday evening with the help of the building’s sprinkler system. Alameda County Fire Department crews were dispatched a commercial warehouse in the 2400 block of Polvorosa Avenue at 5:33 p.m.

Blocks of polystyrene foam were burning and filling the structure with a large volume of black smoke, but a sprinkler system stopped the spread of the fire until firefighters arrived. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

 

Other Business, Residential

Oakland, CA – Sprinkler activates to help control fire in mixed use building

Firefighters quickly extinguished a small structure fire Tuesday afternoon in Oakland near the Fruitvale BART station, according to authorities.   Crews were dispatched to a building in the 1200 block of 37th Avenue at 4:04 p.m. on report of a fire.  A single room was burning on the second floor of a three-story structure with residential units above commercial space on the ground floor.

The fire was put out by the first arriving crews and a lone sprinkler head that activated, according to firefighters. Further details were not immediately available.

Residential, Single Family Home

Mountain View, CA – House fire held in check by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Mountain View firefighters on Sunday extinguished a house fire in the 200 block of Mariposa Avenue. The blaze started in the kitchen when all of the residents were out.  The fire was first reported at 11:10 a.m. on Sunday when people passing by began to notice smoke billowing out of the two-story house. By this time, the house’s fire sprinkler system had triggered and began suppressing the blaze.

Fire crews arrived on the scene within minutes and had the fire fully extinguished by 11:22 a.m. Exactly what sparked the fire remains unclear, and fire officials said Monday that they are still investigating the incident. Damage from the fire was limited to the kitchen area.

“This did demonstrate that a sprinkler system will hold a fire in check,” said fire spokesman Lynn Brown. “It was a happy ending. Shortly afterward the family arrived home, and searched for their cat. The missing feline was eventually found, Brown said.

Other - Retail, Retail

Sonoma, CA – Sprinkler system halts electrical fire at nail salon

An electrical malfunction in a storage room is suspected of causing a fire at a nail salon in Sonoma on Tuesday evening, a fire battalion chief said.

A sprinkler system extinguished most of the fire at the Nails Pro salon at 201 W. Napa St., Sonoma Valley Fire and Rescue Authority Battalion Chief Bob Norrbom said.

The fire department received a water flow alarm and a call from someone in the nearby CVS pharmacy around 7 p.m., Norrbom said.

Food Processing, Manufacturing

Hickman, CA – Sprinklers activate to help stop fire originating in almond roaster

Employees at the Rolling Hills Nut Co. plant south of Hickman were able to extinguish a fire that began on an almond roaster early Wednesday.

At about 2:15 a.m., crews from the Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District and Ceres and Modesto fire departments responded to a report of a structure fire at the plant on the 3000 block of Montpelier Road. The report was of almonds on fire in a warehouse.

First crews on the scene saw light smoke from a warehouse. An almond roaster had been on fire but was extinguished by employees. The sprinkler system also had activated as it should, said Stanislaus Consolidated Battalion Chief Eric DeHart.

Firefighters checked and confirmed that the fire was out, and remained on the scene to help clear smoke, he said.