Tag Archives: Connecticut

Office Building, Other Business

Stamford, CT – Sprinkler system helps contain fire on Thanksgiving at commercial building; No injuries reported

Stamford firefighters extinguished a pair of structure fires Thanksgiving night, according to fire officials. No injuries were reported.

The first blaze was reported just before 10 p.m. at a large, multi-business commercial building on Union Street in the Glenbrook section of the city, the cause of which remains under investigation.

“Upon arrival, Engine 6 from the Glenbrook fire house found the building sprinkler system activated and a strong odor of smoke from the exterior,” wrote Stamford Deputy Fire Chief Eric Lorenz in a statement. “Fire fighters discovered a heavy smoke condition inside the building in a tenant space utilized as a wood-working shop. Fire fighters stretched hose lines, and deployed search ropes to overcome maze like conditions. The source of the smoke was determined to be from a fire involving a dust collection unit in the shop. The fire was held in check by one activated sprinkler head. Fire fighters extinguished the remaining fire and ventilated the building using mechanical fans.”

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Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

East Lyme, CT – Sprinkler system keeps fire contained to seafood department at grocery store; No injuries reported

Responders quickly knocked down an early morning fire Saturday at Tri Town Market in Flanders, saving tens of thousands of dollars in potential damage to the grocery store.

Acting East Lyme Fire Marshal Raymond Hart said the store would be closed the rest of the day as the damage is evaluated, repairs are made and cleanup is completed. He said his office and Ledge Light Health District will evaluate the building to determine when it is safe to reopen.

According to Hart, dispatchers received a call reporting the fire around 6:11 a.m. Flanders Fire Department responded to the fire, which was upgraded to a second-alarm fire, along with mutual aid from Waterford, Old Saybrook and Poquonnock Bridge.

He said the fire originated in one of the deli cases in the seafood department; he said it appears the compressor in the unit overheated, igniting the insulation and creating flames eight to 10 feet tall. The sprinkler units kept the fire contained to the area, and firefighters got it knocked down by 6:19 a.m.

There were no injuries or structural damage to the building, though some of the suspended ceiling and electrical work will need to be replaced. Due to the smoke and water damage, much of the merchandise had to be disposed.

Apartment Building, Residential

New Milford, CT – Apartment grease fire extinguished with the help of sprinkler system

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A kitchen fire drove four families out of their apartments on Monday.

The sprinkler system and homeowner extinguished the grease fire that started around 9:15 p.m. Monday in the kitchen of an apartment at Brookside Commons, said Kevin Reynolds, deputy fire marshal.

But the water from the sprinkler dripped down and damaged the three apartments below, Reynolds said. The apartment where the fire occurred also suffered water damage, he said.

“Sprinklers are great things, but boy they can do some damage,” Reynolds said. “One way or another, they are positive thing.”

Red Cross is helping the eight residents, which includes five adults and three children, by providing tips on how to recover and comfort kits with supplies the families lack, the organization said.

Water Witch Hose Co. 2 and New Milford Ambulance responded, Reynolds said.

There are 12 apartments in Brookside Commons, which is on Thomas Lane.

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Brookfield, CT – Apartment fire contained to kitchen thanks to single fire sprinkler head activation

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Some residents have been displaced from their Federal Road residence following a small kitchen fire Tuesday evening.

It wasn’t the fire that displaced them — it was the sprinkler system, according to the Brookfield Volunteer Fire Company.

It all started shortly before 4 p.m., when volunteer firefighters responded to the activation of fire and water flow alarms at 800 Federal Road.

Upon arrival, crews found a small kitchen fire that tripped the sprinkler head in one of the apartments, causing significant water damage.

The American Red Cross was notified, and the scene was turned over to the Brookfield Fire Marshal’s office.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Norwalk, CT – Fire sprinklers control truck engulfed in flames at lawn service business; No injuries reported

Officials are investigating after a car fire inside a garage in Norwalk sent a firefighter to the hospital Friday morning.

The incident occurred at Tuff Lawn Lawn Service, Inc. on Martin Luther King Drive. 

When crews arrived, they saw a pickup truck engulfed in flames parked next to pallets of fertilizer with pesticides. Crews said the cab of the truck was fully involved in the fire.

The sprinkler system controlled the fire while firefighters extinguished it.

Crews said the damage appears to be confined to the vehicle and the pallets of fertilizer/pesticides next to it.

The firefighter was sent to the hospital for exposure to pesticides in smoke and was treated and released, according to crews.

No injuries have been reported.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Ridgefield, CT – Hotel fire controlled by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

The cause of a fire that broke out at the Days Inn by Wyndham on Route 7 Thursday night is under investigation.

It all started around 10:40 p.m., when an automatic fire alarm went off at the 34-guestroom hotel at 296 Ethan Allen Highway.

The Days Inn has a Ridgefield address, but Redding firefighters were first to respond.

While en route to the scene, dispatch informed them that smoke was coming from the hotel and had activated the sprinkler system.

A working fire was discovered in one of the rooms around 10:50 p.m., and mutual aid from Ridgefield was requested. Georgetown Volunteer Fire Department also responded.

Ridgefield sent two engines and an ambulance, said Ridgefield Fire Chief Jerry Myers.

West Redding Engine 1 stretched a single hose-line into the building and the fire was contained to the unit.

The fire was knocked down shortly after 11 p.m.

Firefighters shut off the hotel’s alarm and sprinkler systems, and started clearing the scene around 11:06 p.m.

There were no reported injuries.

Ridgefield and West Redding Fire Marshal Mickey Grasso is investigating the cause of the fire, but he could not be reached for comment Monday morning.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Enfield, CT – Hotel dryer fire contained by fire sprinkler activation; No injuries reported

Early Friday morning, crews responded to the Hampton Inn at 20 Phoenix Ave., for a fire in a laundry room. Firefighters from Shaker Pines, Hazardville, North Thompsonville and Thompsonville responded to the scene, Richards said.

“Crews encountered flames in a commercial laundry dryer. The fire spread outside the machine, causing the activation of the automatic sprinkler system, which contained the fire,” Richards said.

The inn was evacuated while crews removed smoke from the five-story building. There were no injuries and the cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Bethel, CT – Fire at middle school put out by fire sprinklers

Numerous fire department in the area Bethel responded to a large commercial building fire and a fire at a middle school Sunday afternoon.

According to the Stony Hill Volunteer Fire Company’s Facebook page, numerous companies from Fairfield County responded to a large fire in the Francis J Clarke business park.

Firefighters also responded to Bethel Middle School on calls of smoke in the building. The sprinkler system was able to put out the fire.

Bethel Middle School will not be session Monday.

It is unclear if anyone was inside or hurt at the time of the fires.

College/University (on campus), Residence Hall/Dormitory, Residential

New Haven, CT – Overnight fire in university residence hall contained with help from sprinkler system

Two people suffered smoke inhalation after crews responded to a fire at a Southern Connecticut State University residence hall in New Haven early Tuesday morning. The New Haven Fire Department tweeted that at around 2 a.m., fire crews responded to the West Campus Residence Complex at 160 Wintergreen Avenue after a sprinkler head was activated.

Fire officials say that the fire broke out on the second floor and they believe that it started in a trash can. Two people were treated for smoke inhalation but both refused to go to the hospital.

Firefighters were able to contain the fire to one room but students were evacuated from the building. Most of the students have since been allowed back into the dorm. Officials say that the sprinklers going off helped to put out the flames so smoke was more of an issue as it filled up the second floor. The incident remains under investigation.

Other Business

Torrington, CT – Storage room fire in large multi-business commercial building stopped by sprinkler system

Employees of three companies at 59 Field St. were evacuated last Wednesday around 5 p.m. when a fire was discovered in a storage room at the back of the sprawling factory building. Dozens of members of the Energy Fitness gym were told by Fire Department personnel to leave the building as were employees of the job center New Opportunities Inc.

Torrington Fire Department Battalion Chief Patrick Doyle said foam insulation caught on fire. “The sprinkler system came on and stopped the fire,” he said. Quite a bit of smoke filled the storage room, Doyle said. The room where the fire began has a loading dock attached to one side of the factory building.

“A fire marshal is on the scene, he’s waiting until the smoke clears,” Doyle said, before he entered the building. Engines 4 and 2 from Torrington Fire Department responded to the scene, as did TAC truck 9. The Register Citizen office also is in the building at 59 Field St.