Residential, Townhouse / Condominium Abingdon, MD – Sprinkler contains townhouse fire to room of origin March 14, 2016 viking210 A smoke alarm and sprinkler system helped contain fire in Abingdon last Monday morning, authorities said. An extension cord accidentally sparked a fire Monday morning in Abingdon that displaced four people, according to the Office of the State Fire Marshal. A smoke alarm and sprinkler system helped minimize the damage and allow the man who found the fire to escape safely, authorities said. Two adults and two children lived in the middle-of-the-group townhouse in the 500 block of June Apple Court, the fire marshal reported; all have been displaced. Home alone Monday morning, the boyfriend of one tenant awoke to the sound of the smoke alarm going off and discovered that there was a fire in the second-floor bedroom at 9:56 a.m., officials said. A sprinkler contained the blaze to that room, according to the fire marshal. Approximately 20 firefighters responded and brought the fire under control within 10 minutes, officials reported.
Residential, Townhouse / Condominium Leesburg, MD – Townhouse fire held in check by sprinkler system; No injuries March 7, 2016 viking210 A potentially devastating townhouse fire in Leesburg was held in check by automatic sprinkler system until firefighters arrived. On March 1 at 11:18 a.m., the Loudoun County Emergency Communications Center received a call for an automatic fire alarm at 19278 Harlow Square. A fire engine from Lansdowne responded. Upon arrival the firefighters met the homeowner, who let them know there was a fire in the garage. The crew requested additional resources, bringing fire and rescue units from Ashburn, Leesburg and Kincora. Firefighters located a small fire in the garage being contained by an automatic sprinkler system. Crews rapidly extinguished the remaining fire and ventilated the residence. There were no injuries to public safety personnel or civilians. The Fire Marshal’s Office conducted an investigation and determined the fire to be accidental in nature, causing $25,000 in damages. “The sprinkler activation was undoubtedly responsible for preventing the fire from spreading into the rest of the home,” said Chief Fire Marshal Linda Hale in a prepared statement. “The damages were limited to an area of the garage and the residents were not displaced because of the early warning and intervention of the fire alarm and sprinkler systems.” According to Loudoun County Fire and Rescue, home fire sprinklers can contain and may even extinguish a fire in less time than it would take the fire department to arrive on the scene. Installing both working smoke alarms and a fire sprinkler system reduces the risk of death in a home fire by 82 percent.
Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant Waldorf, MD – Overnight fire at Marriott Courtyard hotel put out by sprinkler system; No injuries March 7, 2016 viking210 A small fire caused an estimated $10,000 in damages to the interior of the Courtyard by Marriott in Waldorf around 2:03 a.m. today. The 3 story hotel is located at 3145 Crain Highway, Waldorf. A hotel employee was alerted by the fire alarm. The sprinkler system activated and extinguished the fire. The one alarm fire involved 40 firefighters from the Waldorf VFD and took approximately 5 minutes to bring under control. There were no injuries or deaths.
Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential Lexington Park, MD – Fire at senior apartment building suppressed by sprinkler system February 11, 2016 viking210 Deputy State Fire Marshals investigated a room and contents fire today at the Lexington Park Senior Apartments located at 21895 Pegg Road in Lexington Park. The 72-year-old female occupant in Apartment 119 awoke to a small fire on her bed at approximately 11:30 a.m. this morning. As she evacuated the bedroom the fire grew large enough to activate the smoke detection system and the fire sprinkler located inside her room. As a result of the quick acting fire sprinkler, fire damage was contained to the bedroom and the estimated loss was limited to $1,500. The victim received mild smoke inhalation injuries and was treated and released at the scene. Nearly 15 firefighters responded from Bay District, Hollywood and Patuxent River Fire Departments and placed the situation under control within one minute after arrival. Investigators determined the fire was caused by discarded smoking materials. No other injuries were reported during the incident. The victim is being relocated temporarily while the apartment is properly cleaned
Apartment Building, Residential Chevy Chase, MD – Sprinkler system holds high rise apartment fire in check January 14, 2016 viking210 Dozens of Montgomery County firefighters responded to the blaze at the Willard Apartments at 4701 Willard Avenue. Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Spokesperson Pete Piringer said the fire originated on the 16th floor of the high rise building. According to Piringer, hundreds of residents were evacuated and some residents with mobility issues had to be assisted out of the building by firefighters. A sprinkler system held the fire in check until firefighters could put 14the blaze out, Piringer said. The fire originated in the sunroom of a 16th floor apartment and damages are estimated at $25,000, according to Piringer. He said the fire was electrical in nature and the cause was related to an extension cord. Two residents were transported to a local hospital for exposure to the fire and smoke. Their injuries are not life threatening, Piringer said. According to Piringer, the fire has displaced six residents from their homes.
Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Bel Air, MD – Fire that started in ductwork controlled with help from sprinklers December 24, 2015 viking210 One person was injured in an electrical fire at an industrial building in Belcamp Tuesday, according to the Office of the State Fire Marshal. The fire began at 11:54 a.m. in the ductwork at Böttcher Systems in the 4600 block of Mercedes Drive, according to the report. An employee and alarm monitoring company discovered the blaze, which began in the exhaust duct, ignited rubber millings, then spread, according to the report, which said a spark detector inside the duct failed to extinguish the millings. The fire was ruled accidental. The 50-year-old employee who found the fire tried to extinguish it and as a result, he sustained a first-degree burn to his finger, the fire marshal reported. He was treated and released at the scene, the report said. After the fire and sprinkler systems activated, it took 30 firefighters from Abingdon, Joppa-Magnolia, Aberdeen and Bel Air approximately 15 minutes to bring it under control, the report said. There was $5,000 in damage to items inside the building, according to the fire marshal.
Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential Perryville, MD – Sprinklers credited with quelling blaze in senior community building December 8, 2015 viking210 Investigators are crediting a residential sprinkler system for quickly extinguishing a kitchen fire inside one of the 92 units at a four-story senior community building in Perryville on Monday morning, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office. Fire officials also reported that one person, who they identified as Jeffrey Coudon, required medical treatment after suffering “minor smoke inhalation.” The blaze started about 5:30 a.m. in the kitchen of a one-bedroom apartment on the third-floor of the Fairgreen Senior Community in the 100 block of Greenway, fire officials said. Investigators blamed the blaze on “unattended cooking on the stove,” fire officials added. “The fire was quickly extinguished by the residential fire sprinkler system, effectively protecting the lives of occupants in the building. Water damage was sustained to the first and second floors, as result of the activation,” said Deputy State Fire Marshal Joseph Walters, lead investigator. About 15 firefighters with volunteer fire companies from Perryville and Perry Point brought the small fire under control in approximately 1 minute, having received advance help from the sprinkler system, fire officials reported.
Government/Military, Other-Government/Military Ocean City, MD – Sprinklers praised for stopping fire at town’s Service Center Warehouse December 3, 2015 viking210 Fire sprinklers in an Ocean City building are attributed to a quickly put out fire last week. Around 1:30 a.m. Nov. 22, the Ocean City Fire Department was dispatched to an automatic fire alarm at the town’s Service Center Warehouse on 65th Street, according to a press release. “By these two fire sprinklers activating, city ambulances, police cars, busses, street sweepers, and other essential equipment was saved,” Fire Marshal David W. Hartley said in the release. “This example shows the huge impact sprinklers have not just in a home, but also in reducing the average loss of property during a fire in a commercial structure.” When firefighters arrived, they found the 12,000 square foot vehicle garage filled with smoke. The call for service was upgraded to a building fire, according to the release, which brought additional fire and EMS resources. Firefighters found two sprinkler heads that were activated extinguished the fire before the department was dispatched. On-scene investigation showed the fire started due to a machine malfunction and was classified accidental. The building was unoccupied at the time of the fire.
Food Processing, Manufacturing Baltimore, MD – Fire at peanut roasting company suppressed by sprinkler system; Allergy concerns alleviated October 7, 2015 viking210 A late-morning fire at a Barcelona Nut Co. warehouse in Southwest Baltimore was quickly extinguished Tuesday, but city emergency officials were concerned enough to warn residents near the 500 block of Fulton Ave. who had nut allergies. “Although we were unclear as to the amount of peanuts burning, we felt that it was worth a warning out of an abundance of caution,” said Connor Scott, spokesman for the city’s Office of Emergency Management. In the end, there was probably little risk, said Dr. Robert Wood, director of pediatric allergy and immunology at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. He said those allergic to peanuts would have to be in proximity to suffer a reaction. “If you were just roasting peanuts you’d have to be within feet of the roasting, in the building,” Wood said. “In a fire, where there were larger volumes being burned, I supposed you’d be at risk within 40-50 yards, but that would probably be the extreme.” The peanut dust would dissipate quickly in the air, he said, adding that no one has studied if burnt peanuts would pose more of a threat than roasted ones. The fire did burn peanuts, which were in a roaster in the plant, confirmed Ed Roush, Barcelona’s quality manager. He said workers also vented the smoke during the fire, which was largely extinguished by the facility’s sprinkler system before fire crews arrived. The firm’s employees were more at risk from the fire; three suffered non-life-threatening injuries — likely smoke-related — trying to put it out, Roush said. He and fire officials didn’t know what caused the fire, but Roush said he hopes to reopen the facility by Thursday or Friday. The company, founded in 1924 by a Spanish immigrant, has been in the current location since 1986. It roasts and packages several kinds of nuts at the plant, which also packages other snack foods. Longtime neighbors said they didn’t see much smoke and weren’t concerned about the peanuts, and didn’t know anyone close by with an allergy. Nancy Will, who once worked in the building, said it’s not often they even get a whiff of nuts, which is a far cry from years past when peanut oil would coat their cars. “You’d turn the windshield wipers on and get a nice smear,” said her husband, Robert Wills, who was sitting on the steps of his Fulton Street house across from Barcelona.
Residential, Townhouse / Condominium Hagerstown, MD – Single sprinkler extinguishes residential kitchen fire August 3, 2015 viking210 No one was injured during a minor kitchen fire Thursday afternoon on Hagerstown’s North End, according to City Fire Marshal Doug DeHaven. The fire was reported at 1:30 p.m. in the 17600 block of Potter Bell Way in the Hager’s Crossing development, DeHaven said in a news release. He said a single sprinkler head from the home’s quick-response sprinkler system extinguished the fire before firefighters arrived. Firefighters ventilated smoke from the home, and all of the units were cleared by 2:30 p.m., DeHaven said.
