Tag Archives: Canada

Athletic Club/Sports Facility, Other Business

Port Hope, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system contains fire at sports complex to area of origin

The investigation into the cause of a “minor fire” in one of the family change rooms at the Jack Burger Sports Complex is continuing, as is clean-up following the fire. “Investigation by the fire department is ongoing at this point and the cause of the fire has not yet been determined,” said Kate Ingram, the communications and community engagement coordinator for the Municipality of Port Hope, just after 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 6. Port Hope Fire and Emergency Services, along with other emergency crews, responded to the fire call after 5 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 5.

Patrons at the sports complex were evacuated immediately and the facility was shut down. All programming, including the on-ice activities at the arena were cancelled until further notice, with emergency crews remaining at the scene at 60 Highland Dr. into the evening Tuesday.

“The facility will remain closed until the investigation is complete,” said the municipality Tuesday evening following the fire.

In an updated public notice about noon on Wednesday, the municipality confirmed all pool programs remain cancelled for the day.

“The pool accessible change room will be closed for an extended period of time for full remediation,” the latest public notice further states.

There was some smoke damage, Ingram confirmed Wednesday.

An additional update on details about the status of pool programming for Thursday, Feb. 7 is to be issued after 4 p.m. Wednesday.

The arena, however, has reopened, “after required inspections to the fire monitoring system,” but residents are being encouraged to check in with their community program providers to ensure programming is ongoing given current inclement weather conditions.

There have been no injuries reported as a result of the fire.

Director and fire chief C. Ryan Edgar has confirmed the fire was contained to the area of origin and the “fire sprinkler system did exactly what it was supposed to do.”

The fire was out at the complex not long after the initial call went out.

As of 7 a.m. Wednesday, patrons who left behind any belongings during evacuation could contact staff at the Jack Burger Sports Complex to make arrangements to pick up items. Residents looking to make those arrangements or with inquiries can reach staff at 905-885-2474.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Winnipeg, MB, Canada – Fire at strip mall controlled by sprinkler system till fire crews arrived

No one was injured after a small fire at a fitness centre on Portage Avenue Sunday morning.

The Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service said firefighters were called to the scene of a strip mall in the 900 block of Portage Avenue at about 7:57 a.m.

Smoke was coming from the eaves from Valentine’s Fitness and Weight Loss Centre, so firefighters went inside to launch an attack and the fire was quickly put out.

The building’s sprinkler system helped control the fire before firefighters got there, said the WFPS.

The building suffered minimal fire damage but the business saw extensive smoke damage, they added.

No one was in the building at the time, and the fire was caused by a broken bathroom fan. There are currently no damage estimates.

Apartment Building, Residential

Peterborough, ON, Canada – Third floor apartment fire extinguished with help from sprinkler system

Two people were displaced, following a fire on Anson Street last night.

Fire crews responded to reports of a fire at the apartment complex just before 930pm.

Officials say that they found a fire inside a unit on the third floor, and along with the buildings sprinkler system, they were able to extinguish the fire and confine it before it spread to other units.

The lone unit sustained some water damage, which led to the displacement of two people, one of which sustained minor fire related injuries and was treated and released on scene.

The cause of the fire is said to be accidental, and damage is pegged at $50,000.

Other - Retail, Retail

Mission, BC, Canada – Sprinkler system activated for fire at tire store

Wednesday night’s fire inside the Mission Canadian Tire store is now considered to be suspicious.

According to a press release, the Mission RCMP have opened an active investigation.

Police are seeking any witnesses to the fire and asking them to come forward.

The release asks that if anyone was in the area of Canadian Tire, on London Ave., between 6-7 p.m. during the time of the fire and has dash cam footage, they should forward it to the Mission RCMP Detachment.

Anyone who may have witnessed anything suspicious in the area during the time of the fire are also urged to come forward with information.

The fire broke out inside the Canadian Tire store at about 6:30 p.m. on Jan. 30.

Mission Fire Rescue Service was called and quickly responded.

“Crews, when they arrived on scene, found smoke right to the floor, inside the structure,” said Mission fire chief Dale Unrau.

Firefighters located the blaze “within the racking.” It has been “mostly put out” by the in-building sprinkler system, explained Unrau.

“Firefighters completed extinguishing the fire and at this point in time are just ventilating the structure,” Unrau said on Wednesday night.

There were no injuries to report as staff and customers exited the store safely. No firefighters were injured during the blaze.

Unrau said there is no damage to the structure itself but the clean up will take time.

“The sprinkler system did a great job and extinguished the fire, but there’s lots of water throughout the store and smoke throughout the store as well, so I’m sure the building will be out of service for an extended period of time.”

Several hours later, at about 2 a.m. Thursday morning, firefighters were called out to the store again as a second fire began to burn.

“We’re not quite sure why we had another fire break out in there, but when we left after the first one, our fire investigators had already completed their investigation in the initial fire area and our crews that were ventilating the structure had gone through and done a final check with a thermal camera and everything was cold,” said Unrau.

He called it a mystery and noted that the Mission RCMP were on scene throughout the night, watching the structure until the morning when the police investigation team arrived.

Unrau said the fire is “definitely suspicious.”

“I have a big team of investigators digging through the rubble as we speak.”

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

St. Thomas, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system helps control nursing home fire

Clean-up efforts continued Monday at a St. Thomas retirement home after a fire last Saturday night. A few dozen residents remain displaced by the fire, but officials are saying things could have been much worse if it wasn’t for the safety precautions in place. A recent fire safety drill at Caressant Care may have prevented mass casualties over the weekend.

Bill Todd, St. Thomas fire prevention officer, says, “In November we did a timed drill in that wing, with staff…Here we are less than two months later doing the real thing…So training helps.” When first responders arrived four minutes after a 911 call, staff were already transporting patients from the nursing home wing, to the retirement side.

Clive Hubbard, an investigator with the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office, says “The staff at this facility did a great job of following their fire safety plan and getting [patients] from the fire zone to a safety zone.” Not only were staff prepared, but the building was as well. After a massive fire in Orillia, Ont. in 2009 new legislation required nursing homes to have sprinkler systems in place by 2025. Caressant Care did a proactive retrofit five years ago. Todd says, “This fire would have been a whole lot worse if it wasn’t for sprinklers…It doesn’t put out a fire but delays, in this case it did exactly what it was supposed to do.”

And first responders kicked into high gear as well. At the height of the fire there were 36 firefighters and more than ten EMS vehicles on Bonnie Place, with others alerted

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

New Hamburg, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system extinguished fire at factory; No injuries reported

Fire crews responded to a factory in New Hamburg Saturday afternoon.

One person was inside the Eurocan Pet Products building when firefighters from New Hamburg and Baden showed up.

The building was filled with smoke but the fire had been put out by the sprinkler system by the time crews arrived.

Factory fire in New Hamburg leads to an investigation.

“The sprinkler did its job. Controlled and extinguished the fire and contained it to just the one office,” says Russell Strickler, a Chief with the New Hamburg Fire Department.

An investigation is underway to determine how the fire started.

No injuries were reported.

Apartment Building, Residential

Grande Prairie, AB, Canada – Fire in apartment building contained to one suite by sprinkler system

A fire prompted an evacuation of Willow Place on Saturday evening but was contained to one apartment suite.

The Grande Prairie Fire Department received the call at 6:26 p.m. Platoon chief Tony Lutzmann said that the sprinkler system managed to control the fire and firefighters went in to ensure the fire was extinguished.

“There was a considerable amount of smoke throughout the building so the building was evacuated,” Lutzmann said, adding that they had a transit bus on scene to provide temporary shelter for the evacuees.

Operated by the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), Willow Place is a 57-unit apartment building for people with mental health conditions.

Lutzmann noted that the cause of the fire appeared to be “cooking-related” but added that the investigation was ongoing. He also offered advice on kitchen fires.

“Don’t leave cooking unattended and ensure you have something to extinguish the fire in case there is a kitchen fire,” he said.

Victim Services and the Red Cross also attended the scene.

Adult Care/Rehab Center, Residential

Kamloops, BC, Canada – Arson fire in newly built supportive housing building extinguished by sprinkler system

Police have arrested a 32-year-old man for allegedly setting fire to a room at the newly built Mission Flats Manor on Tuesday night. Kamloops Mounties and firefighters responded to the supportive housing building at 805 Mission Flats Rd. at approximately 10 p.m. RCMP Cpl. Jodi Shelkie said the fire appeared to have been purposely set in one of the rooms of the building and officers arrested a male suspect at the scene.

“Surveillance video shows a male in the area of the fire just minutes before the fire alarm was activated,” Shelkie said. Kamloops Fire Rescue Insp. Kevin Cassidy said the fire began in the washroom of unit 221, on the second floor, where a running propane-powered blow torch was left running up against a wicker laundry basket. He said a sprinkler in the room extinguished the fire, which is considered arson.

No one was injured or displaced by the fire, to which 14 firefighters responded. “Everyone was back in right away,” said Cassidy. The fire was contained to the laundry basket, Cassidy said, noting firefighters checked to ensure there was no extension of flames before clearing the scene.

Shelkie said police are not disclosing whether the suspect is a resident of Mission Flats Manor. The RCMP has sent all investigative information has been sent to the Crown to determine if arson charges will move forward.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Windsor, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system activated at rubber processing plant

Windsor Fire and Rescue Services firefighters at the scene of a fire at Windsor Rubber Processing Ltd. at 1680 Kildare Road on Dec. 27, 2018. Emergency crews were called out during the noon hour after a machine that shreds rubber overheated, igniting fine fibres in the air. The plant’s sprinkler system extinguished a small fire before fire crews arrived. Firefighters spent nearly two hours at the scene, chasing down glowing embers in the rafters of the evacuated industrial facility. Total damages were described as minor by city fire officials.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Hamilton, ON, Canada – Fire in dust collector at manufacturing facility contained by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Hamilton firefighters were called to National Steelcar for an early morning blaze.  Fire officials believe a spark ignited combustible materials in the company’s dust collection system.  The building’s sprinkler had the blaze under control when firefighters arrived, but crews had to open the dust collection system and remove the filter to put out the fire.  The flames didn’t spread to the rest of the building, and all employees managed to escape without injury.