Tag Archives: Michigan

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Escanaba, MI – Fire at paper mill contained with help from sprinkler system

Escanaba Public Safety responded to a fire in one of the wood rooms of the Verso Paper Mill in Wells Township.

According to Escanaba Public Safety, they were dispatched at approximately 11:25 a.m. to assist Verso Fire Brigade. Public safety responded with one pumper, the 75 foot ladder truck and the rescue unit with the portable air filling station. They also provided nine officers to assist.

The quick response and joint effort of both fire departments, along with the building’s sprinkler system, curtailed the fire from spreading. The last unit cleared the scene at 2:30 p.m.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Flat Rock, MI – Storage fire at auto assembly plant controlled with help from single sprinkler

A fire that started in storage racks damaged the north side of the Flat Rock Auto Assembly Plant Tuesday night, causing hundreds of workers to be evacuated from the building. Firefighters from Flat Rock, Rockwood and Woodhaven responded to the plant at Gibraltar Rd. and I-75 about 7 p.m. Tuesday.  Firefighters could see smoke billowing from the plant at the Flat Rock station, Chief William Vack said.

“When we arrived, it was going pretty good, and you could see smoke about 100 feet in the air,” Chief Vack said afterward. “Once we got our water supplies established, we had it knocked down in about a half hour.”

Where the fire started was only about 100 feet from Vreeland Rd., he said. Heat from the fire penetrated an exterior wall on the north side of the plant, activating a single sprinkler in a newer section of the building, he said. The sprinkler helped quell any fire inside.

“Most of the plant was unaffected,” Chief Vack said. “The fire was near the truck docks. … There was no smoke in the building.”

He said it was standard procedure to evacuate the plant when a fire alarm is activated. The amount of damage was unknown but was not believed to be extensive. Firefighters were on the scene for about two hours.

Other - Retail, Retail

Gaylord, MI – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in containing fire at fireworks store

Fire crews in Otsego County had to rush to save a fireworks store after a fire ignited overnight. The Otsego County Fire Department says the fire started just before midnight in Gaylord. The Otsego County fire chief says if they didn’t have a sprinkler system, the result could have been much different. Crews were able to contain the fire in about a half an hour Tuesday night.

Residential, Single Family Home

Battle Creek, MI – Early morning arson fire in home is extinguished by sprinkler system

Battle Creek firefighters and Battle Creek police are investigating a break-in and arson at a home. Firefighters were called to 141 Green St. at 6:21 a.m. Wednesday, according to Fire Marshal Quincy Jones. Jones said it appeared someone forced open a back door and set a fire in the kitchen in the rear of the two-story, wood-frame home. Jones said a home sprinkler system extinguished the fire and damage from the fire and water was minimal. A fire alarm alerted neighbors and they called 911, Jones said. The rental home was vacant at the time of the fire. Both fire officials and detectives from the Battle Creek Police Department are investigating.

Apartment Building, Residential

Pontiac, MI – Apartment fire started by child playing with lighter is put out by sprinkler system

At 1 p.m. Tuesday, a fire was reported on Center Street near Cottage Street at a four-story apartment building in Pontiac.  All residents were evacuated, and the building’s sprinkler system put out the fire before crews arrived.

Later, investigators learned the fire may have started due to a child playing with a lighter. There was minor fire damage to the apartment building, but significant smoke and water damage following the sprinkler system activation, Lyman said.

“It’s important to keep flammables away from children,” said Lyman. “(The residents) were lucky they were able to get out” of the building.

Apartment Building, Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Battle Creek, MI – Kitchen fire at senior apartment complex controlled with help from sprinkler system

NORTH POINTE WOODS FIRE: Damage was estimated at $20,000 after a fire at North Pointe Woods at 700 North Ave. Battle Creek firefighters were called at 6:43 a.m. Monday, the city reported in a news release on Thursday. Firefighters said the fire began on the stove when a stove burner was left on. The fire activated the sprinkler system. A second-floor apartment was damaged with smoke and water and a first floor apartment below had water damage. A hallway on the first floor also filled with water. Residents remained in their apartments as firefighters used ventilators to remove smoke from the hallways.

Apartment Building, Residential

Kalamazoo, MI – Sprinkler system credited with containing apartment fire to room of origin; No injuries

**NO MEDIA COVERAGE – Fire Department Reported**

Friday night May 6, 2016 at 10:09 pm the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety responded to a report of a fire in an 11 unit apartment building in the 1000 block of Washington Avenue. A couch fire which was releasing a large amount of black smoke and heat was suppressed by the sprinkler system.  The fire was contained to the room of origin.  No one was hurt and after the suppression system was placed back into service the occupants of 9 of the 11 units were safely back into their homes.  The sprinkler system was praised for preventing further damage to the building

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Saginaw, MI – Sprinkler system helps contain fire at auto repair shop

Saginaw firefighters were dispatched to a fire at the corner of Holland and East Genesee about 5:50 p.m. on Friday, March 18.

The fire occurred at Rick’s Automotive, 1935 E. Genesee, where black smoke could be seen coming from inside of the building when firefighters arrived at the scene.

A sprinkler system that was activated helped contain the fire, according to a firefighter at the scene.

Other - Retail, Retail

Canton, MI – Sprinkler system helps saves salon in Victorian building from fire

A Canton salon and spa owner has refused to let a fire and water damage shut down her business in a two-story Victorian building in Cherry Hill Village. “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass,” said Melissa Huetter, owner of Indigo Salon, Spa & Boutique. “It’s all about perseverance and resilience.”

Huetter was out of town — hundreds of miles away — when she got word that a second-story fire occurred about 4 a.m. Friday, Feb. 12, inside Indigo Salon. She caught a flight home within hours. Huetter said there was speculation the fire was electrical, but an official cause hasn’t been determined.

The fire set off an alarm and a sprinkler system that doused the blaze before Canton firefighters arrived. “If the sprinkler system hadn’t been there,” Deputy Fire Chief Chris Stoecklein said, “that building could have been a total loss.”

Because the fire occurred about 4 a.m., Stoecklein said, the salon, located at Cherry Hill and Ridge roads, could have been engulfed in flames before anyone noticed it. Still, Huetter said the sprinkler system caused widespread water damage to 50-60 percent of her salon because it sent water from the second floor throughout much of the west side of the building.

The fire forced the salon to close for the busy Valentine’s Day weekend, but Huetter reopened the following Tuesday. Repairs are continuing, but Huetter and her 36 employees have managed to resume full service ranging from massages to facials to body waxing. She said the east side of the building wasn’t damaged like the west side. The entire spa side was untouched.

“We are still offering everything that we originally offered,” Huetter said. “We are just doing it with modified logistics.”

Department Store, Retail

Shelby Township, MI – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in containing storage closet fire at Kohl’s store; No injuries

A fire inside a Kohl’s storage room early Wednesday afternoon prompted an evacuation and caused extensive smoke damage to the store and merchandise, according to the fire department. The fire ignited just before 1 p.m. inside a supply room at the back of Kohl’s at 25 Mile and Van Dyke, Fire Chief Jim Swinkowski said. There were no injuries reported.  “When our crews got there, they did encounter some heavy fire,” Swinkowski said.

The store was evacuated as soon as employees and customers saw smoke and the fire alarm sounded, Swinkowski said. The sprinkler system activated and fire personnel were able to extinguish the inferno before it spread beyond the storage room, which contained store supplies like signage and batteries.

“It did not spread to the rest of the store or the adjacent stores,” Swinkowski said of the fire. “But there was extensive smoke damage throughout Kohl’s.” Other stores at the shopping center include Target and Home Depot.

Kohl’s will remain closed Wednesday, Swinkowski said. The level of smoke damage to merchandise may make it difficult to reopen soon. “Anytime you’ve got smoke and you’re dealing with linens and clothing, they’re out there (in the store),” he said. “That is up to the Kohl’s loss prevention division to deal with that. It would be tough to be open (Thursday) but that’s not my area of expertise.”

Kohl’s representatives who answered the phone at the store Wednesday refused to comment.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation but is not considered suspicious, he said.

“We’re just beginning our investigation now so we will not know for some time,” Swinkowski said.