Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic Orlando, FL – Sprinklers activate to help stop fire at Lake Nona VA Medical Center; No injuries July 21, 2016 viking210 A fire struck the fourth floor of a domiciliary at the Orlando Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Lake Nona Wednesday, according to the Orlando Fire Department, and residents are likely to be moved from the center to another yet-to-be opened facility at Lake Baldwin. Just before 11:30 a.m., firefighters responded to a two-alarm fire at the residential facility at 13800 Veterans Way, according to the fire department. It is on the same campus as the newly opened VA hospital center, but is in a separate building. Fire sprinkler alarms were activated in the fire that struck the patient intake processing area of the facility, VA medical center spokesman Mike Strickler and the OFD said. Once firefighters arrived on the scene, they extinguished the flames by 11:40 a.m., according to the OFD. There were no injuries reported in the fire, Strickler said.
Other / Not Specified, Other Business Boca Raton, FL – Overnight laundry fire at veterinary office contained by sprinkler system July 15, 2016 viking210 At 12:37AM Thursday, Boca Raton Firefighters responded to a fire located at the Calusa Veterinary office, 6900 Congress Ave, Boca Raton. Firefighters arrived and found heavy smoke inside the building and the fire being kept confined to a clothes dryer by the activation of a single head from the buildings fire sprinkler system. Firefighters quickly extinguished the limited remaining fire which was located inside the drum of the clothes dryer with a pressurized water extinguisher. Several staff members were on scene at the time of the fire and were moving animals to a safe location as the fire department arrived. There were no firefighter or civilian injuries. All animals were rescued, one dog suffered smoke inhalation and was treated by paramedics and then turned over to the veterinary staff for follow-up treatment and is doing better. Fire Investigators are on scene, the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation at the time of this press release.
Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential Pensacola, FL – Fire at senior apartment building contained with help from sprinkler system June 19, 2016 viking210 Nearly 100 residents of a senior living complex in Ensley had to be evacuated because of an apartment fire Thursday morning. Around 11:26 a.m., Escambia County received a 911 call reporting smoke and flames visible at the Johnson Lakes Apartments in the 1400 Block of East Johnson Avenue. Responding firefighters were able to contain and extinguish the fire quickly, but the blistering heat outside created a whole new set of problems. The National Weather Service reported heat index values of more than 100 degrees Thursday. Residents of the four-story, 160-unit apartment complex had to be loaded onto air-conditioned Escambia County Area Transit buses while firefighters checked every apartment for damage or stragglers. All told, two people were transported to West Florida Hospital (for heat exhaustion and breathing difficulties respectively), at least four people were displaced, 88 people were evaluated and temporarily placed on buses, and six people were found sheltering inside the building, according to county officials. “The fire itself was relatively minor in nature, but the pure size of the building is a bit of a challenge,” said Deputy Fire Chief Paul Williams. “We had to ensure residents were evacuated or sheltered in a safe portion of the building.” Williams said firefighters also had to assist some residents out of the building because of their limited mobility. In the parking lot outside, people clustered together in small patches of shade along a low-stone wall. Several sat in wheelchairs, leaned on walkers or pulled oxygen tanks behind them as they waited for ECAT buses to arrive. A team of Red Cross workers handed out bottles of water to tenants and firefighters, urging apartment residents to hurry into the air-conditioned buses as they became available. Though most praised the response of the rescue personnel, a few grumbled about the high temperatures outside. “It’s hotter out here than it was in there,” one person remarked. Escambia County Fire Rescue personnel from all over the area responded, and they were backed up by crews from Pensacola, the U.S. Navy, Pace and Avalon. Once the fire was under control, they set about the arduous business checking the status of every apartment. The fire originated in an apartment on the second floor, activating a sprinkler in the apartment, officials said. Williams said the State Fire Marshal’s Office is working to determine the cause. Jessie Brown, who lives on the second floor, said he never saw flames, but was alerted to the fire by the hubbub out in the hallway. Waiting outside, he said he was worried about what the water had done to his belongings. I dread going back in there now and looking at my apartment,” Brown said. Williams said Thursday evening that officials believed most residents would be able to return to their homes that night. He also said approximately four units were temporarily uninhabitable, but that occupants could potentially be housed elsewhere in the complex until repairs were complete. Jerry Kindle, CEO of the American Red Cross of Northwest Florida, said Thursday evening the organization assisted 30 people from 29 units with clothing, lodging, food or other needs. He credited the organization’s volunteers for coming together so quickly in a time of need. “The Gulf Coast is a giving community,” Kindle said. “The total number of staff that showed up was two people, the rest were all volunteers.”
Residential, Single Family Home Santa Rosa Beach, FL – House fire caused by lightening strike limited by sprinkler system June 6, 2016 viking210 … The third call was for a reported direct lightning strike of a home on Dill Ave in the Rosemary Beach area. Crews were able to contain the fire damage to the attic. The home’s sprinkler system also helped limit the damage. All of the structures were occupied when lightning hit, but no injuries were reported. There were no immediate damage estimates. The Bay County Fire Department and Destin Fire Control District provided mutual aid.
Apartment Building, Residential Rockledge, FL – Sprinkler system activates in apartment kitchen fire June 4, 2016 viking210 Firefighters from Brevard County Fire Rescue and the Rockledge Fire Department responded to a small kitchen fire at the Mission Bay Apartment complex in Viera just after 9 p.m. on Wednesday, according to Brevard County Fire Rescue. The fire prompted sprinkler activation in at least one unit.
Apartment Building, Residential Maitland, FL – Sprinkler system helps put out apartment fire caused by charging drone battery May 26, 2016 viking210 A drone battery charging inside a Maitland apartment caused a fire to erupt early Sunday morning, according to Maitland Fire Rescue. The fire happened around 1 a.m. inside one of the units at the Arbors at Maitland Summit apartments. Fire officials say the woman inside the apartment tried to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, but the fire grew, causing the sprinkler system to go off. According to fire officials, the drone battery was left unattended while it was charging. “They put it on the charger, they went to sleep,” said Assistant Fire Chief Van Camp. “Someone woke up from the smell of smoke, went out, saw the batter was on fire, tried to put it out and it kept growing on them.” Only one building at the apartment complex was evacuated. Those residents have since been allowed back into their apartments. No injuries were reported. The unit where the fire started sustained water damage, according to fire officials.
Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant St. Augustine, FL – Fire in ballroom at resort hotel quickly put out by sprinkler system May 15, 2016 viking210 Multiple fire crews were called to the World Golf Village Renaissance Resort and Convention Center during an active evacuation Thursday night, fire officials said. Firefighters confirmed that there was a fire in one of the convention ballrooms and found smoke, according to a post on the St. Johns County Fire Rescue Facebook page. Alarms went off inside the hotel at 8:15 p.m. and the sprinkler system promptly put out the fire, officials said. Crews said they had to perform smoke removal, salvage and overhaul. The ballroom did suffer damage, according to officials. No injuries have been reported and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Primary / Secondary School, School / University West Palm Beach, FL – Fire at high school is kept from spreading by sprinkler system; Fire started in an appliance April 19, 2016 viking210 A “small” fire at Forest Hill High School Sunday night triggered the sprinkler system and prompted West Palm Beach Fire Department to dispatch crews to the campus. In the end, some classrooms in one building suffered water damage, according to a call that went to parents this morning. Classes will be shuffled to other rooms on the West Palm Beach campus, but school will continue as scheduled. According to the call, a water mitigation company began the clean up work at midnight and will be there for the coming days. Sounds like the school’s band, chorus and drama classes will be feeling the pinch. The call reports that band and chorus classes will meet instead in the school auditorium. “Drama will be located in our lobby.” Imagining that’s a reference to the class. Update: Principal Mary Stratos says that it appears an appliance was the source of the fire that happened Sunday night. That small fire triggered the school’s sprinkler system and also brought out the fire department – and this morning she is singing their praises. “What an unbelievable group,” Stratos said. “They went far and beyond.” Authorities aren’t sure how or why the appliance caught fire (no detail yet on which appliance, but think coffee machine, microwave or such), but they are reviewing school video for clues, Stratos said. Most of the damage is water damage that is in a couple of rooms including the band room, where a wall must be removed. Mitigation crews had removed the water by Monday morning, but the smell of smoke and burned plastic still hung in the air, prompted Stratos to close the building for now and relocate classes. “We’ve put in new charcoal filters and air cleaners, so I just have to wait for those things to do what they’re supposed to do,” Stratos said. Meanwhile, the school schedule is moving forward including students taking the computer-based Florida Standards Assessments for Engli
Apartment Building, Residential Orlando, FL – Hoverboard fire at apartment building limited by sprinkler system April 11, 2016 viking210 A hoverboard set out to charge burst into flames inside an Orange County apartment Thursday, displacing three families, according to Orange County Fire Rescue. More than a dozen firefighters responded after the fire broke out in a third-floor apartment on Avalon Reserve Boulevard just before 8 p.m. Officials said the hoverboard went up in flames while it was charging. A dog was removed from the home after residents were evacuated. “There was one child who apparently ran in there to get the dog,” Battalion Chief Carollee Burrell said. The child was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation. The mother of the child, who asked not to be identified, said she was at work when she got the frantic call. The hoverboard was a Christmas gift for her son. The son, who also was not identified, said the hoverboard started to shake before bursting into flames. The flames did not spread throughout the apartment but sprinklers went off inside of it and two neighboring units. Orange County Fire Rescue said three families were displaced due to water damage from the sprinkler. The Red Cross is helping those residents find a place to stay.
Residential High Rise, Townhouse / Condominium Highland Beach, FL – Fire at oceanfront high-rise condominium building controlled with help from sprinkler system March 6, 2016 viking210 Delray Beach Fire Rescue was called to an oceanfront Highland Beach high-rise condominium last Sunday afternoon when a fire started in a fourth-floor unit. No one was injured in the fire, according to Delray Beach Fire Rescue spokesman Capt. Kevin Saxton. “The fire is out, but there is significant water damage to the building because of the sprinkler activation and our suppression effort,” Saxton said. Saxton said he did not yet know what started the fire in the unit at the Wiltshire House Condominiums, 2909 South Ocean Blvd. The call alerting the fire was made at about 3:45 p.m.
