Tag Archives: Morning (7am-12pm)

Other - Retail, Retail

West Union, OH – Fire contained to one wall in women’s restroom thanks to fire sprinklers

In the morning hours of Thursday, Feb. 6, an alarm was sounded at the site of the old Prather’s IGA store and the future site Adams County Workforce & Development Center. A small fire was reported but no significant damage was done to the structure.

According to reports sent to The Defender, the fire was contained to just one wall in the women’s bathroom, and it was believed to have been caused by a shirt in the bathroom’s exhaust fan. Fortunately, the sprinkler head was an estimated foot from the exhaust fan and helped quickly extinguish the small fire. The wall that was damaged was scheduled for demolition in the future remodeling of the site to become the training center and there was no damage to the roof or trusses.

According to Holly Johnson, Director of the Adams County Economic Development office, the small fire “will not impede progress” in the work on the new Training Center.

Johnson continued, “We cannot thank Officer Jason Hanson of the Adams County Sheriff’s Office and Officer Brown of the West Union Police Department for their early detection of the alarm, plus all of the other law enforcement agencies and personnel that responded to the incident. West Union Life Squad personnel and the West Union Fire Department were there in full force, also assisted by the Manchester Fire Department.

Residence Hall/Dormitory, Residential

Tempe, AZ – High-rise fire at Arizona State University residence hall kept in check by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

More than three dozen people have been displaced after a fire broke out at a high-rise apartment building in Tempe on Friday morning.  

When crews arrived, smoke was coming from the 8th floor, according to the Tempe Fire Department. 

Fire and medical units from Tempe, Phoenix and Mesa responded to the fire call at the University Towers on Mill Avenue and University Drive around 11 a.m.

Firefighters say they found food burning on the stove in one unit. The building’s sprinklers went off and kept the fire from spreading.

The high-rise is a residence hall for Arizona State University students. 

About 40 people from 16 units are unable to return to their apartment primarily because of water damage, according to ASU. 

No injuries were reported. 

ASU’s Fire Marshal Office is investigating. 

Casino, Other Business

Las Vegas, NV – Fire sprinkler helps control mattress fire at casino hotel

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department released more details surrounding a small fire that broke out at the Excalibur Hotel and Casino Wednesday morning.

In a press conference, Capt. Dori Koren said a sexual assault victim was in the hotel room when a fire broke out 11:30 a.m. and that a search for a suspect was underway.

According to Clark County Fire Department deputy fire chief Jeff Buchanan, firefighters responded after a reported fire on the sixth floor.

When crews arrived, they found a mattress on fire inside one of the hotel rooms where there was a sprinkler activation.

Buchanan said hotel engineers and fire officials were continuing to work to ventilate smoke from the floor and no evacuations were necessary.

A suspect description was not released as the investigation was in the “preliminary stages,” said Capt. Koren.

No additional details surrounding the fire were released.

Office Building, Other Business

Meriden, CT – Sprinkler system contains fire in dust collection system at office building

Hundreds of employees of a business in Meriden were evacuated after a fire on Wednesday.

Firefighters who were driving by the Meriden Enterprise Center on the way to another call around 10:10 a.m. reported what they believed was a furnace malfunction in the basement of the business, fire officials said.

After an investigation, firefighters said they found a working fire in a dust collection system in the basement. The dust collection system spread through the vents of the building.

The fire is under control, however, there was significant smoke, authorities added. A working sprinkler system contained the fire to one room.

Three hundred employees of the business were evacuated, fire officials said.

A nearby church was also evacuated because of the fire.

The Twitter account for Episcopal Church in Connecticut in Meriden says all church staff who were there are safe and evacuated.

No additional information was immediately available.  

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Santa Barbara, CA – Hotel fire kept in check thanks to sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Firefighters responded Sunday to a fire in an area under renovation at the Hyatt Centric Hotel on the beachfront in Santa Barbara.

Crews were dispatched shortly after 10 a.m. to the hotel at 1111 E. Cabrillo Blvd., Santa Barbara City Fire Chief Eric Nickel told Noozhawk.

The fire was on the roof in an area of the hotel being remodeled, Nickel said, adding that when firefighters arrived, they found workers attempting to put out the blaze.

The fire likely was caused by the roofers, Nickel said, noting that a propane tank and a hot torch were found near the ignition point.

Firefighters used a ladder truck to make access to the roof, and pulled apart some of the roofing material to gain access to the flames.

The fire was declared under control at 10:52 a.m., Nickel said.

He noted that the flames were kept in check by the hotel’s sprinkler system.

“With the building under construction and the walls all opened up, we could have lost the whole thing if not for the sprinklers,” he said.

Crews searched the first and second floors of the affected area to make sure everyone was out, Nickel said.

Firefighters remained on scene late Sunday morning doing overhaul, and an investigator was called in to search for the cause of the fire.

No injuries were reported.

With all of the city’s fire engines and trucks assigned to the incident, crews from Santa Barbara County and Montecito were called in to provide coverage in the city, Nickel said.

Check back with Noozhawk for updates to this story.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Brookings, SD – Fire sprinklers keep fire in check in paint booth at electronics company; No injuries reported

A fire at Daktronics wasn’t as bad as it could have been, thanks to sprinklers, according to Brookings Fire Chief Darrell Hartmann.

The fire department was called out at 9:04 a.m. Tuesday to the north side of building 2 at Daktronics, Hartmann said.

“It came in as a sprinkler discharge with alarm,” Hartmann said.

Employees were evacuated and reported that the problem was “in one of the paint booths, which it was,” he said.

“We got crews inside pretty quickly; assessed if we had any fire extension,” Hartmann said.

“The sprinklers kind of kept everything in check for us, which was great. It worked the way it’s designed,” he said.

Crews pulled some of the filter units that were smoldering and made sure the fire was out and things were cooling off, he said.

“Shut down the sprinkler to minimize any more water damage,” Hartmann said. 

Nobody was injured, he said.

“Daktronics did a wonderful job,” Hartmann said. “They got their personnel out, but they were there to assist the whole time.”

Fire crews cleared the scene at 9:54 a.m.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Portland, OR – Sprinkler system controlled fire at grocery story; No injuries reported

An electrical fire on Friday temporarily closed the Safeway grocery store at 2800 Southeast Hawthorne Blvd., filling the store with smoke.

The store reopened Saturday, with the smell of smoke still lingering.

A Safeway spokeswoman said the electrical fire started on top of one of the grocery aisles Friday morning, which in turn set off the store’s sprinkler system.

The sprinklers did their job and contained the fire, spokeswoman Jill McGinnis said. No customers or employees were injured.

McGinnis said local store directors worked to clean up the store and get it reopened quickly.

“We’re just really thankful that nobody got hurt,” McGinnis said.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Sacramento, CA – Fire at strip mall contained by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

Firefighters say no one was hurt in a two-alarm fire at a south Sacramento strip mall on Friday morning.

The scene was along the 5800 block of Stockton Boulevard.

According to the Sacramento Fire Department, the fire was first reported a little after 7 a.m. A second-alarm was called.

Firefighters extinguished the flames within the hour. They credit the building’s sprinkler system with helping contain the flames to one unit.

Traffic in the area was blocked due to the fire response.

Exactly what caused the fire is still under investigation.

Office Building, Other Business

Des Moines, IA – Fire sprinklers contained second floor fire at downtown Capital Square building; No injuries reported

No injuries have been reported in a fire Thursday morning that forced people to evacuate a downtown Des Moines building.

The blaze began a little before 7:30 a.m. on the third floor of the Capital Square building, which counts The Des Moines Register newspaper among its tenants.

Flames and some shattered windows could be seen from the street.

Fire Department spokesman Rick Thomas says most of the flames had been knocked down by a little after 8 a.m. He told the newspaper that fire sprinklers checked the blaze until firefighters could begin their work.

The fire cause is being investigated. 

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Burien, WA – Sprinkler activation keeps fire from spreading; saves auto repair shop and occupant’s life

Firefighters rescued a man from a fire at an auto repair shop in Burien Saturday morning.

The fire happened at the Kansai Collision Center in the 15200 block of First Avenue South at about 8 a.m.

“Looks like we had a car fire inside of a paint booth inside the repair shop,” said Chief Mike Marrs of King County Fire District #2.

KIRO 7 talked to a woman named Miriam who works nearby.

“Suddenly I just heard this alarm but I didn’t know where it was coming from,” said Miriam.

Miriam said she and another coworker quickly realized it was coming from the repair shop.

“I was kind of scared and she said, ‘Miriam there’s smoke coming from the collision center.’ So right away I called 911,” she added.

Firefighters arrived to heavy smoke coming from the building. Fortunately, the building had a working sprinkler system. Marrs said it not only kept the fire from spreading; it was a lifesaver.

“The activation of the sprinkler system probably saved this building as well as saving the occupant’s life,” Marrs explained.

The man suffered smoke inhalation.

He was transported to Harborview Medical Center in critical condition.

KIRO 7 also learned the shop was closed at the time. A manager told KIRO 7 the man did not work there but was allowed to stay there because he had no other place to go.

The cause of the fire is unknown right now.