Tag Archives: Canada

Residential, Residential High Rise

Waterloo, ON, Canada – Unattended cooking pan causes stove fire; Sprinkler system activated

A fire in a highrise student building has caused more than $150,000 in damage and required some of the students to be evacuated from their unit.

Waterloo fire department responded to a call at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Preston House, 315 King St. N., which is between Columbia Street and University Avenue.

The fire was caused by someone cooking on the stove who had left the pan unattended, said platoon chief Earl Reitzel.

The sprinkler system went off and the flow of water created “quite a lot of damage” to that unit, several units immediately below, and to the elevator shaft. A total of seven people are affected.

The building managers will find other places in the building for the tenants to stay, if necessary, while the units are being cleaned up, Reitzel said.

Not paying attention while cooking is one of the major causes of fires, he said.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Charlottetown, PE, Canada – Sprinkler system activated after sauna prompts evacuation in shopping mall; No injuries reported

The Charlottetown Mall will be re-opening Tuesday following a fire that triggered an evacuation of the entire complex Sunday afternoon.

However, the Spa Total Fitness Centre, where the fire originated, will remain closed.

No one was injured during the fire, which prompted a response from the Charlottetown Fire Department shortly after 3 p.m.

Fire Chief Randy MacDonald said firefighters were able to quickly locate the blaze in a sauna.

“We were able to tear the wall apart and put the fire out,” said MacDonald, who described the sauna as “gutted” and noted a sprinkler system was also activated by the fire.

The Guardian was unsuccessful in reaching the owner of Spa Total Fitness Centre.

However, the centre’s Twitter account provided an update stating it would remain closed on Tuesday.

“We are working very hard to have the facility open to you all again very soon. Thank you very much for your patience during this time,” it stated.

Firefighters were still investigating the cause of the blaze Sunday evening. The Guardian was unable to reach the city’s fire inspector Monday.

Charlottetown police and Island EMS also responded to the scene.

Police and mall management conducted the evacuation.

Sgt. Dave Pound of Charlottetown Police Services said all available officers responded to the call and the evacuation went “very smoothly.”

“I’ve got to give credit to mall staff and security for their efforts in getting everyone out safely,” said Pound, who estimated there were a few hundred people in the mall at the time of the evacuation. “There would easily have been as many or more in the cinemas, they were full at the time (of the fire).”

The Cineplex Cinemas located in the mall was evacuated during the fire but was later given the OK to re-open Sunday evening. The theatre resumed normal operations on Monday, although the rest of the mall was closed.

The incident also attracted a number of onlookers as smoke billowed out of the building.

Pound said police made an effort to block off entrances to the mall property in order to reduce congestion while others were leaving the parking lots.

Once firefighters had extinguished the blaze, they remained on scene in order to clear out the smoke.

“The smoke was hard to get out of the building,” said MacDonald.

Other Business

Victoria, BC, Canada – Fire in electrical room at historic theater doused by sprinkler system

Victoria Fire Department crews responded to a minor fire in an electrical room in the basement of the Belfry Theater on Friday night.  Alarms went off around 9:50 p.m., fire crews arrived and smelled smoke at the heritage building on Gladstone Avenue in Fernwood.  They say the sprinkler system was activated and had extinguished the flames before they could spread any further.

“The sprinklers were very effective at putting out the fire,” said Battalion Chief Doug Carey.  A fire investigator has been called in to try to determine the cause. There were no performances on Friday night but a fundraiser and silent auction for Peers Victoria is scheduled for Saturday evening. “There is some water damage down there so I have to see how bad it is,” said Ivan Habel, Executive Director at the Belfry Theatre.

“There is the smell of smoke so we need to see how quickly it will clear out.” The Belfry Theatre is housed in a former Baptist Church completed in 1892. Renovations were completed in 2000 with the restoration of the exterior. The building is listed in the heritage registry and has won a number of awards for its restoration.

Storage / Warehouse, Warehouse

Hamilton, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system helps limit damage, saves structure in food warehouse fire

The facility where all food for Fortino’s supermarkets is stored and packaged suffered heavy smoke damage after a multiple-alarm fire broke out in a back storage area Friday morning.  Firefighters were called to the commercial building on Rymal Road East around 9:22 a.m. and found a large fire in a room where cardboard is stored.  The building’s sprinkler system had activated and additional firefighters were called in to take on the flames with an “aggressive interior attack,” according to department spokesperson, Claudio Mostacci.  No injuries reported  Officials say smoke from the fire caused a total of $255,000 in damage, including $233,000-worth of food. Mostacci said the city’s Health Department was called in because of the damaged food. No injuries were reported. The Ontario Fire Marshal has been called in to investigate what caused the fire.

Other Business, Recycling / Waste Facility

Saskatoon, SK, Canada – Sprinkler system confines fire at recycling center; Assists firefighters in extinguishing difficult blaze

No one was injured after a fire broke out at the Loraas Recycling facility on First Avenue North in Saskatoon on Monday afternoon. The Saskatoon Fire Department said it received the initial call reporting the fire just after 1 p.m. When crews arrived, they encountered heavy smoke coming from an overhead door of a building. They determined the location of the fire and started an offensive interior attack, the fire department said in a media release. The fire briefly intensified as firefighters tried to put out the seat, or main body, of the fire. Another engine was called out to assist crews at the scene, the fire department said in the release.

The fire involved cardboard and machinery. The fire, “very difficult to extinguish,” was brought under control in just over two hours, the fire department said. Employees left the building before the fire crew arrived and a sprinkler system had activated, confining the fire. The cause of the fire is under investigation. No damage estimate is available.

Government Office, Office Building

Ponoka, AB, Canada – Fire in recycle bin at government building extinguished by sprinkler system

Ponoka RCMP are investigating a small fire that occurred at the Ponoka Provincial Building Wednesday around lunch. Along with police, the Ponoka County East District Fire Department were called to the scene where a blue recycle bin appears to have burst into flames. The building’s fire sprinkler system was set off, which extinguished the fire, and also covered a portion of the main floor. What was left of the bin was moved outside while RCMP investigated. A small amount of water was left on the floor near the sprinkler that went off.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Hamilton, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system keeps overnight fire from spreading at shopping plaza

Firefighters were called to a blaze last Thursday night at plaza in East Hamilton.  Officials say a fire broke out in a garbage bin behind a strip mall at 640 Queenston Rd. The fire spread into the Mark’s clothing store, triggering the sprinkler system.  Hamilton Fire spokesperson Claudio Mostacci says smoke and water damage is estimated at roughly $100,000.  No injuries were reported.  The fire is being considered suspicious and the Ontario Fire Marshal has been called in to investigate.

Other Business, Recycling / Waste Facility

Brampton, ON, Canada – Overnight fire at recycling business limited by sprinkler system

Brampton firefighters were called to a tire recycling business on Bramwin Court for a fire in the early morning hours Wednesday (March 28).  As the first firefighters arrived around 4 a.m., they called for a second alarm. However, firefighters say the building’s sprinkler system worked to their advantage and helped contain the flames.  There were no reports of injuries. The area remained closed during the morning rush hour as crews cleaned up at the scene.

Apartment Building, Residential

Campbell River, BC, Canada – Single sprinkler credited in controlling blaze in 48-unit apartment building

Officials in Campbell River are crediting a single sprinkler for preventing major damage to a new apartment building when a fire broke out last week. The blaze started on the fourth-floor of a 48 unit building in the 700-block of Merecroft Road just after midnight Thursday. The single sprinkler kept flames under control until fire crews arrived. There were no injuries although some tenants will be displaced for a few days while the water from the sprinkler is dealt with by the building owner.

“No one was home in that apartment, but occupants in the rest of the large complex were awoken by the fire alarm, and that single sprinkler helped contain the fire,” fire chief Ian Baikie said in a release. “This is a much better outcome than a fire in an unoccupied unit without fire sprinklers.”

Fire and smoke damage was confined to a single unit on the fourth floor and water from the sprinkler got into units below where the blaze occurred. Baikie said if not for the sprinkler, people would have been out of their homes for weeks or months.

Hospital/Care Facility

Chilliwack, BC, Canada – Sprinklers limit fire damage in supportive housing complex

A sprinkler system is being credited with limiting the fire damage in a supportive housing complex in Chilliwack Monday morning.

Firefighters responded to an alarm just before 3 a.m. from a building located in the 8900 block of School Street.

When they arrived, they determined the alarm had been triggered by a fire on the top floor of the four-storey structure. A sprinkler head had been activated due to a number of fires that had been intentionally set in one of the suites, said the Chilliwack Fire Department.

A single sprinkler had controlled and extinguished the fires.

Firefighters confirmed the fires were out and shut off the sprinkler system.

Majority of the damage in the unit was related to multiple fires apparently set by the lone tenant, the department said. There was minor water damage to the units below.

Crews from Chilliwack Firehalls 1 and 4 responded to call.

There were no firefighter injuries, and fire officials and RCMP fire investigators are continuing their investigation.