Sprinklers at Quincy Recycling prevented a paper fire from spreading early Wednesday morning.
The Marion Fire Department responded to the business in the 6200 block of North Gateway Drive for a paper pile smoldering around 3:20 am.
When crews arrived the pile had already been extinguished by the business’s deluge sprinkler system.
The fire started near the shredder and was confined to the discharge pile.
All occupants exited the building and no one was injured.
No injuries were reported in the blaze, which was quickly extinguished at 505 Research Dr. after it activated the plant’s sprinkler system, according to public safety radio traffic.
Firefighters are investigating the cause of the fire at this hour.
Officers of the Perry Police Department also responded.
Firefighters responded to the scene around 1:30 a.m., and the fire was extinguished by 1:48 a.m.
According to Fire Chief, Pat Treloar, the fire was located in the seed area of the plant, and there is considerable damage to the conveyor belt.
Treloar also said the sprinkler system worked effectively, and helped prevent the fire from escalating.
Responders say that due to the sprinkler system activation, there was little damage and the fire was contained to a small corner of the kitchen. The cause of the fire is still under investigation but ruled to be accidental.
Crews estimate roughly $15,000 in damage.
The small fire was found in the second floor kitchen at White Star Ale House, but officials said it was being held in check by the sprinkler system. No one was at the restaurant when the fire occurred.
In a release, officials said a bag of rags ignited due to animal fat from the grease and heat from being laundered earlier in the night by staff.
Officials said the building suffered minor damage.
Firefighters encouraged residents and businesses to spread out laundered clothing or towels after removing from the dryer to allow them to cool.
The hotel is now letting residents back in, though at time of publication the power is still off on the 4th, 5th, and 6th floors. The elevator is shut off, with the hotel’s maintenance worker saying it likely won’t be back up until Friday.
Fire Chief Tony Miller says the fire was caused by an electrical issue in an elevator storage closet. An electrical meter corroded, sparking a fire, and catching a roll-up mattress in the room on fire. It activated a sprinkler on the 6th floor, which firefighters say helped in putting out the fire quickly.
However, Chief Miller notes these types of sparks can just happen from time to time. “Hotel Ottumwa is maintained pretty good, but occasionally you have an accident. And that was what this was: nothing but an accident. Between the fire department and health department, we inspect that place on a regular basis. So if there’s anything that’s off kilter, we take care of it and make sure it’s maintained like it should be.”
The fire department is reviewing the fire damage done to the room and sixth floor of the hotel. They also had to kick in a door on the sixth floor to rescue a resident. Chief Miller says they took two people to the hospital, both with smoke immolation.
The Coralville Fire Department responded to two fires this weekend.
One in a residential building at 1512 1st Ave that was contained to a closet and extinguished within 15 minutes of fire department arrival. The second was at a commercial building, 2000 James St, and contained by the buildings sprinkler system until the fire department arrived and extinguished it. Both fires caused under $20,000 worth of damage each, and are considered accidental. Authorities are still investigating to determine a cause.
No one was injured in ether incident.
An overnight fire caused an estimated $50,000 in damage to a Coralville business.
According to a news release, the Coralville Fire Department was called to Theisen’s, 100 Westcor Dr., around 3:40 a.m. Wednesday. The fire department credits the store’s sprinkler system for suppressing the fire before crews arrived.
The business sustained a small amount of fire damage, as well as light smoke and water damage.
Firefighters remained on scene until 6 a.m. to help with water removal so the business could open on time, the fire department said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, but is believed to be accidental.
No one was injured when a dumpster caught fire at a senior living center Monday afternoon.
Fire officials said a dumpster caught fire at Floyd Place Senior Living in Sergeant Bluff, Iowa.
A neighbor made the 9-1-1 call and pulled the dumpster away from the building.
Before fire crews could arrive, officials said police put the dumpster fire out.
However, the fire damaged part of the building’s siding.
“We had the sprinkler system going off helping extinguish the fire, we did a secondary search making sure everyone was out of the building. They’ll have the fire sprinkler company coming up to reset their fire sprinklers. It was a great case they maintained their fire protection systems well. And the fire sprinkler system saved their building,” said fire chief Anthony Gaul.
As a precuation, resident were evacuated. They were allowed back inside after fire crews checked out the damage.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Des Moines fire crews are investigating the cause of a fire at a laundromat Tuesday morning.
It happened at the Coin Laundry in the 2300 block of East University Avenue at about 9 a.m.
Fire crews told KCCI the sprinkler system did its job in suppressing the fire. They believe it may have started in a dryer vent.
There were no injuries reported in the fire. Traffic in one westbound lane of East University Avenue was closed so crews could work at the scene.
