Tag Archives: Maryland

Hospital/Care Facility

Senior living facility fire contained by sprinklers (Towson, MD)

Shortly before 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 4, a fire began in the kitchen of one of the unit’s of a high rise senior living facility. When fire crews arrived, they found heavy smoke on the fourth, fifth, and sixth floor, but the fire itself had been controlled by the room’s fire sprinkler. Firefighters were able to put out the fire within 20 minutes. There were no injuries reported.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Fire at high school eliminated by sprinkler system (Snow Hill, MD)

This morning at about 1 a.m., a fire at a high school brought fire crews as well as teachers and maintenance teams to its location. The sprinkler system at the school put out the fire where it began – in a closet in the science wing of the building. No one reported injured, and the cause of the fire is related to a computer cart that was charging. 

Apartment Building, Residential

Sprinklers keep fire from spreading in apartment fire (Crofton, MD)

On the afternoon of January 9, a fire was called into the Anne Arundel County Firefighters at a three story apartment building. The fire, which started on the balcony of a second floor unit, had quickly spread into the living room, where a fire sprinkler activated and contained the fire until fire crews arrived. A 20-year old male was in the apartment at the time of the fire, and he remained uninjured from the incident. The fire department was able to extinguish the remaining flames within 20 minutes of arrival, and investigators report that the fire was caused by improperly disposed smoking materials.

Other - Storage / Warehouse, Storage / Warehouse

Sprinklers keep fire from spreading in UPS facility (Landover, MD)

A UPS truck caught fire inside a shipping plant on Saturday, December 7, and fire crews quickly responded to the fire call. According to the Prince George County Fire Department, the fire sprinkler system in the shipping plant, which had activated in response to the heat of the fire, helped the firefighters to get the fire extinguished quickly. There were no injuries reported.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Sprinkler contains arson fire at high school (Havre de Grace, MD)

About 25 firefighters responded to a fire that was intentionally started in the boys’ bathroom of Aberdeen High School on December 3. The afternoon blaze was set by a 16-year old male who ignited the paper towel dispenser; the fire resulted in 1,400 students to be activated. The school’s fire sprinkler activated and kept the fire from spreading beyond the bathroom. Firefighters were able to put out the remaining fire within five minutes. There were no injuries reported.

** Blog Editor’s Note – Please let us know what you think of the coverage by The Baltimore Sun, which focused on water damage rather than the lives and property saved by the automatic fire sprinkler system**

Apartment Building, Residential

Sprinkler holds fire at bay at apartment complex (Annapolis, MD)

A sprinkler contained a fire inside an apartment complex laundry room preventing anyone from being injured or displaced Monday night, a city fire department spokeswoman said. Firefighters responded to the Admiral Oaks apartment complex shortly after 9 p.m. for reports of smoke coming from a laundry room, fire department spokeswoman Capt. Janet Kiefler said. The sprinkler contained the fire until firefighters could arrive and quickly extinguish it, Kiefler said. The fire was determined to be caused by a malfunctioning dryer.

Residential, Townhouse / Condominium

Sprinkler system allows family time to evacuate safety from their townhouse (Perryville, MD)

Investigators are crediting a sprinkler system with taming the flames before they spread throughout the residence, leaving responding firefighters with little to do but vent theplace and perform a safety check, fire officials reported.  The occupants at that time — a mother and her two children — were able to safely escape the townhouse after discovering thefire.  The fire detective also reported,“Damages were minimal and the family was able to remain inside their home for the night.”

Apartment Building, Residential

Another apartment fire controlled by automatic sprinkler system (Hagerstown, MD)

An apartment building was evacuated Thursday night after a small fire broke out inside one of the units, according to city fire official at the scene.  Damage was minimal, and it appeared that mostly clothes were destroyed before the building’s sprinkler system extinguished the blaze.  “The sprinkler system did the job it is supposed to do tonight and this is a good reason for people to ensure that they are installed,” said Hagerstown Fire Department Captain Adam Hopkins.