Tag Archives: Minnesota

Apartment Building, Residential

St. Cloud, MN – Sprinkler system douses overnight apartment fire; No injuries

An apartment fire late Sunday caused about $6,000 damage at Empire Apartments, 54 Fourth Ave. N. The person who lived in the apartment left the apartment with the stove on, according to fire investigators. Items on the stove caught fire and burned the cabinetry above the stove. Two sprinkler heads activated and put the fire out. No injuries were reported.

Residence Hall/Dormitory, Residential

Hibbing, MN – Kitchen fire at community college dormitory suppressed by sprinkler system

A dorm at the Hibbing Community College was evacuated Thursday due to a grease fire in one of the rooms.  A student was reportedly cooking with oil on the stove when the pan caught fire around 4 p.m.  When the fire wouldn’t burn out, the student placed the pan in the shower.   Authorities say when water hit the oil there was a flash grease fire which set off the sprinkler system in the bathroom, suppressing the fire.

The student received minor burns to his left hand and was treated and released from the Hibbing Hospital.  The building sustained smoke and water damage estimated at $10,000.

From 2009-2013 U.S. fire departments responded to almost 4,000 dormitory fires and 86% of them were kitchen fires, according to the Hibbing Fire Department.  Fire crews are reminding people make sure to use a tight fitting lid when cooking with oil and to remember to never pour water on a grease fire.

Apartment Building, Residential

Rochester, MN – Fire officials credit sprinkler system in extinguishing apartment blaze

Officials with the Rochester Fire Department are crediting a “sprinkler save” with extinguishing a fire inside an unoccupied apartment Thursday evening. Firefighters were sent at 5:54 p.m. to 2804 Second St. SW in response to a sprinkler alarm — sent by facilities when the sprinklers have been activated.

When they arrived, the apartment was full of smoke, said Deputy Chief Vance Swisher, but the flames had already been extinguished, thanks to the sprinklers. A preliminary investigation indicates a lamp that had been left on fell onto some combustible materials in a children’s bedroom, he said. The ensuing fire activated two sprinkler heads, putting out the fire before it could spread.

“It could have been a significantly larger fire,” Swisher said, “and certainly done more damage to the building.” The residents of that apartment were unable to stay there because of the water damage, he said, and the apartment below it may have sustained some damage, too.

Apartment Building, Residential

Burnsville, MN – Suspected arson fire at apartment building doused by sprinkler system

Authorities are asking for the public’s help to find suspects of a suspected arson fire in Burnsville over the weekend. Burnsville Police and Fire departments say a fire at the Meridian Point Apartments, 51 McAndrews Road West, has been ruled suspicious. The fire, which happened on Sunday, was contained thanks to a single sprinkler head in the apartment building.

Fire crews arrived on scene to find smoke coming from a stairwell leading from the basement garage to the first floor. The building’s sprinkler system had already been activated and managed to keep the fire damage to a minimum. No building residents were displaced by the fire and no injuries were reported.

An investigation into the fire has led officials to believe it was intentionally set. Assistant Fire Chief Doug Nelson states in a release the cause appears to be suspicious and the circumstances of the fire remain under investigation. They ask any residents with information to call the arson hotline at 1-800-723-2020. A reward of up to $5,000 is available for information leading to the identity of the person or persons responsible.

Apartment Building, Residential

Shakopee, MN – Single sprinkler controls fire in apartment building laundry room

A single fire sprinkler contained a dryer fire in the second floor laundry room at White Pines Apartments in Shakopee Sunday morning, and Fire Marshal Tom Pitschneider credited it with preventing a significant blaze that could have displaced several residents.

Firefighters were called to the apartment complex located at 1364 Eagle Creek Blvd. at 10:50 a.m. Pitschneider said when Shakopee police arrived they reported there was a dryer on fire in the second floor laundry room. When firefighters arrived a single fire sprinkler in the laundry room had already activated due to heat from the fire.

The sprinkler controlled the fire and kept it from spreading both within the room and through the building, Pitschneider said. Firefighters removed the dryer and ventilated the building to remove smoke.

There was smoke and water damage to the second floor in the area of the laundry room and water damage to the first floor directly below. There were no injuries reported and all residents were able to return to their units.

Apartment Building, Residential

Rochester, MN – Sprinkler system prevents apartment fire from spreading; No injuries reported

An apartment sprinkler system is being credited for preventing a more serious fire — and possibly injuries, officials said today.

A sprinkler activation alarm at 8:40 p.m. Tuesday sent Rochester fire crews to 2350 Valleyhigh Drive NW. The family, including children ages 4, 2 and 1, was outside when trucks arrived, said Larry Mueller, assistant fire marshal.

A woman in the home had been making pastries in an oil-filled pot on the stove, Mueller said. She left the kitchen for a moment, and when she returned found three- to four-foot flames coming from the pan.

The sprinkler system above the stove extinguished the fire, Mueller said, leaving only slight water damage to cabinets and nearby carpet.

“The sprinkler saved thousands of dollars in damage, and possibly the family,” he said.

Though the home was habitable, the Red Cross put the family up for the night because of the age of the children and the clean-up necessary, the report says.

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Eden Prairie, MN – Sprinkler system contains fire at business with hydrofluoric acid

Six firefighters were taken to a hospital after they were exposed to hydrofluoric acid on Wednesday, July 15, during a business fire call in Eden Prairie. Eden Prairie Fire Chief George Esbensen said the call of a commercial building fire at SVT Associates, 7620 Executive Drive, came in around 4:37 p.m. and the first arriving engine and chiefs got there in less than five minutes. The fire was in one room of an office space occupied by the company.

“The fire sprinkler system was holding the fire in check and fire crews were able to make short work of the remaining fire. After the fire was knocked down and as overhaul was beginning several firefighters began to experience symptoms consistent with a chemical exposure,” he said. “Five firefighters from EP and one from Bloomington were transported to Methodist Hospital where it was determined they had been exposed through their skin with hydrofluoric acid.”

Esbensen said the acid is commonly used in metal etching and stripping. All six firefighters were treated and released by 11:30 p.m. the same day. They have since returned to duty.

There was some loss of equipment as a result of the chemical exposure. Turnout gear that was exposed to the chemical will not be able to be cleaned and there are 13 sets that need to be replaced. Additionally the department is waiting to hear what parts of the self contained breathing apparatus can be cleaned as well as other tools. The department doesn’t have exact replacement costs yet on the gear, but the estimate is around $50,000, Esbensen said.

“There are other items that were impacted but we haven’t determined the best course of action on those yet,” he said.

Department Store, Retail

Edina, MN – Sprinkler system contains fire to small area at H&M store

The H&M store at the Southdale Center in Edina is closed Friday after a fire on the second floor.  Edina officials say the fire was reported at 10:30 a.m. after a piece of clothing caught fire and caused the sprinkler system to activate.

Officials say the fire was contained to a small area of the store, but both the first and second floor have smoke and water damage. The store is closed as crews work to clean up.  No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Hospital/Care Facility, Other - Hospital/Medical

Rochester, MN – Sprinkler system douses fire at Mayo support facility; No injuries reported

Rochester Fire Department responded to the Mayo Support Center Thursday morning after a piece of machinery that cleans the floor caught fire. “We showed up and they had a smoke haze in the building. The building was investigated and found that in the maintenance area, a piece of maintenance equipment had malfunctioned during charging and caused a small fire, which initiated the sprinkler system, which almost completely extinguished the fire” said Chuck Solseth, the Rochester Fire Department Acting Battalion Chief.

 Initially, one fire engine and the battalion chief car responded to the fire alarm; however, two more engines were called in after the discovery of smoke being produced.  Crews went in with a carbon dioxide extinguisher and put out what the sprinklers couldn’t.

Solseth said this type of fire does not happen very often. “It’s not very common for things to just catch fire while they’re in there charging. It does happen on occasion. But that’s why it’s important that we monitor what’s going on. Pieces of the equipment that you’re charging, if they’re abnormally warm or making any type of odd odors or sounds, may be reason to unplug it and investigate it further,” said Solseth.

Solseth added that when plastic pieces catch fire, like that of the floor cleaning machinery, it can prove to be detrimental. “The plastics create/release chemicals. The smoke itself will have carbon monoxide in it because of the products of combustion. We ventilated the structure out, used our respiratory equipment, so that we could access the area, ventilated it out, and then verified it with air monitors that there was no more hazard for us,” said Solseth.

Employees of the Mayo Support Center were evacuated until around 12:30 p.m. Thursday.