Tag Archives: Morning (7am-12pm)

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Fresno, CA – Sprinkler system activated for kitchen fire at restaurant; No injuries reported

A morning kitchen fire prompted the temporary closure of a popular restaurant in Fresno, the Fresno Fire Department said.

Crews responded to a commercial fire on the 4400 block of West Ashlan Ave. on Thursday around 7:30 a.m.

Firefighters say a small kitchen fire at a popular restaurant, the Legendary Pho Kitchen, activated the sprinkler system, extinguishing the flames before they arrived on the scene. Although the fire was minor and no injuries were reported, the sprinkler activation caused damage throughout the business.

This incident, fire crews say, prompted the restaurant to close. The business will be closed until necessary repairs are made. An expected opening time has not been provided.

The cause of the fire remains unknown.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Port Alberni, BC, Canada – Sprinkler system activated for fire at secondary school; No injuries reported

Alberni District Secondary School will reopen Friday following a fire — with the exception of one small room near the source of the blaze that needs added remediation. 

Classes were cancelled Thursday after a fire broke out before the school day started, the Pacific Rim School District said.  The school has about 1,300 students in Grades 8 through 12.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Staff and the few students on site escaped the building without incident and the situation was quickly brought under control, the district said.

The school’s water-suppression system activated immediately and the Port Alberni Fire Department was at the scene within minutes.

Fire Chief Mike Owens said the fire appears to have started in a classroom space adjacent to the school’s auto mechanics area.

Owens said the fire damage was confined to the classroom of origin.

“A lot of the fire was knocked down by the sprinkler system, so there was quite a bit of water involved,” he said.

He said the school is a concrete structure, so it handled the water better than a wooden building would have.

Fire investigators remained on scene through Thursday morning.

The building was closed for the remainder of the day to allow for cleanup.

Port Alberni firefighters received assistance at the fire from the Sproat Lake Volunteer Fire Department, the Beaver Creek Volunteer Fire Department and the Cherry Creek Fire Department.

The school district said it was “deeply grateful” for the quick response from the fire departments, “as well as the quick actions of our staff in ensuring everyone’s safety and minimizing damage.”

Residential, Residential High Rise

Hollywood, CA – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire in 22-story high rise; No injuries reported

A sprinkler system put out a fire that broke out in a 22-story high rise in Hollywood Sunday morning, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Firefighters responded to 1522 N. Gordon St., north of Sunset Boulevard, just before 11 a.m. Sunday, according to the LAFD.

“Firefighters made entry and determined there was a sprinkler activation on the 14th floor. Upon arriving on the fire floor, crews located a ‘fire out,'” the LAFD said.

No injuries were reported.

Firefighters remained on the scene to conduct salvage operations and remove water that had accumulated due to the sprinklers.

Airport, Other Business

Minot, ND – Sprinkler system activated for fire at international airport; No injuries reported

The Minot Fire Department had to respond to a call at the Minot International Airport Saturday morning.

The call came in at 9:15 a.m. from an automatic alert from the fire alarm company, and firefighters found smoke coming from a ground-floor office space.

There were minimal flames, and the fire was contained. Authorities say heavy smoke activated the fire suppression sprinkler system.

The airport’s terminal was temporarily evacuated, and after the fire was put out, air quality tests were conducted, and the terminal reopened within an hour.

Since the terminal is open, airport operations will continue as normal, but it is suggested to contact your airline for the most up-to-date flight information.

There were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Chapin, SC – Sprinkler system contains dryer fire at high school; No injuries reported

Dutch Fork Fire Rescue units responded to Spring Hill High School Tuesday after a dryer caught fire.

According to the school, the fire happened around 10 a.m. when a dryer in the kitchen area caught fire and activated the sprinkler system.

Firefighters said the fire was contained in the dryer at the back of the school.

Administrators at the school confirmed all students and staff were evacuated and they are accounted for.

No injuries were reported.

Units are working on removing the dryer and ventilating the building.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Los Alamos, NM – Sprinkler system activated for kitchen fire at restaurant; No injuries reported

A fire broke out this morning in a kitchen shared by Los Alamos Cantina at 157 Central Park Square and the Pyramid Cafe at 155 Central Park Square. There were no injuries to firefighters on scene and the building was searched concurrent to fire control assignments and no occupants were found, the building was empty at the time.

Los Alamos Deputy Fire Chief Wendy Servey explained that at approximately 8:17 a.m. today the Los Alamos Fire Department (LAFD) responded to a report of a structure fire at 157 Central Park Square. A fire detection system had alerted dispatch and a sprinkler system activated prior to LAFD’s arrival, she said, adding that within 40 minutes crews had thoroughly ensured there was no fire extension into adjacent businesses or the attic/roof area and reported “loss stopped” as the situation was under control.

Deputy Chief Servey said that Engine Company crews from Station 6 and Station 1 quickly forced entry and contained the fire found in the kitchen area. Due to the quick and coordinated fire attack along with the sprinkler system the fire was quickly controlled with minor to moderate damage to the interior to include smoke damage throughout both businesses. Structural/foundations and roofs/attic spaces appear not to be compromised, she said. Units dispatched to the scene were Battalion 1, Engine 6, Medic 6, Engine 1, Truck 1, Medic 1 and Rescue 1.

The exact cause of the fire is under investigation by fire investigators from LAFD.

The Los Alamos Chamber of Commerce and the MainStreet programs are working with the owner and manager of these eateries to explore ways the community can support them during this difficult time. More information will be shared soon.

Food Processing, Manufacturing

Cudahy, WI – Sprinkler system contains fire at food processing plant

A fire at Smithfield Foods’ legacy Patrick Cudahy plant in Cudahy, Wis., on Saturday, Jan. 4, resulted in one person being taken to a hospital and minor damage, according to local reports.

The fire department was called when smoke was discovered on the plant’s third and fourth floors Saturday morning. A sprinkler system contained the fire, and firefighters extinguished the fire after finding smoke coming from a piece of machinery on the fourth floor.

One person was taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation. Although the fire caused minor damage, the news reports said it had little impact on facility operations.

Food Processing, Manufacturing

Fairfield, OH – Sprinkler system activated for fire at food plant; No injuries reported

A fire at the Koch Foods plant in Fairfield, Ohio, caused about $50,000 worth of damage.

The Fairfield Fire Department (FFD) received the first call about the fire at approximately 7:10 a.m. on December 31, reported WLWT. Upon arrival, responders found the fire in a mechanical room on the second floor of the main part of the plant.

According to the fire department, the facility’s sprinkler system had automatically activated when the fire started, which helped prevent further spread of the fire, which was extinguished in about 20 minutes.

The cause of the fire is believed to be a malfunctioning motor in the mechanical room.

No injuries related to the fire were reported.

The FFD received assistance from several nearby fire departments.

The Fairfield plant underwent an expansion in 2022, adding to the company’s existing workforce.

Koch Foods, according to information from the WATTPoultry.com Top Poultry Companies Database, is the sixth largest poultry producer in the United States, having processed 62.10 million pounds of ready to cook chicken during the past year.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Bridgeport, WV – Sprinkler system activated for fire at mall; No injuries reported

Multiple fire departments responded to a fire at Meadowbrook Mall on Sunday morning.

Harrison County 911 received reports of smoke and flames coming from Exotic Nails, located near the food court, at approximately 7:50 a.m. Fire crews initially found no signs of fire but discovered smoke and an active sprinkler system during a more thorough investigation.

No injuries were reported, and the extent of the damage to the affected areas is under assessment. It’s believed that the mall’s food court and several stores suffered some water damage.

Bridgeport Fire, Anmoore Fire & EMS, Nutter Fort Fire, Shinnston Fire, and Spelter Fire responded to the call.

Animal Shelter / Animal Care Center

Milpitas, CA – Sprinkler system activated for fire at animal shelter; No injuries reported

One of the major animal shelters in the South Bay is working to reopen after a fire forced staff and animals to evacuate.

The fire that broke out at Humane Society Silicon Valley in Milpitas on Monday morning forced the center to close and discontinue all services while repairs are underway.

There were no injuries, but it has put pet adoptions on hold during one of the busiest times of the year.

On Tuesday afternoon, crews worked outside the complex to clean up what was primarily water damage, according to officials at the shelter.

On Monday morning, a fire inside the ceiling of the center’s laundry room triggered the fire suppression sprinkler system, which caused most of the damage.

It “caused a lot of water damage in our medical clinic as well as in our operations area which is adjacent to the laundry room and has left about half of our building unusable,’ said Nancy Willis, the vice president of strategic growth at the shelter.

Willis said there were just under 100 animals in the shelter at the time of the fire. The Humane Society called in its team of foster families to get many of them offsite and into stable environments while repairs are made to the building.

“Of course, all of the animals were evacuated out of the shelter because we did not know what was going to happen,” Willis said.

The news of the closure came as a surprise to some people who arrived hoping to adopt pets.

“I came today to get a dog for my children,” said Milpitas resident Nico Afuola.

Afuola stopped by the shelter on his lunch hour to try to adopt a dog as a Christmas gift for his family.

“I mean I was kind of bummed out, you know, I wanted to get a dog, but it is OK I will go take a look somewhere else. But this is my first choice,” Afuola said.

The fire also damaged the shelter’s computer servers, interrupting the ability to show online animals available for adoption.

The center plans to reopen its adoption services on Wednesday and believes the community will respond.

“Folks will come in, adopt the animals that we have on our adoption floor now, and we will be able to continue to bring animals in and find loving homes for them,” Willis said.

Milpitas Fire Chief Jason Schoonover said in a statement on Tuesday, “Additional investigation found that the fire appeared to have started in a portion of the building utilized for utility and laundry purposes, prior to spreading to the attic and activating the automatic fire sprinkler protection system.”

He added that while the sprinkler system minimized fire spread, the facility sustained substantial smoke and water damage.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Reporting on lives and property saved by fire sprinklers