Tag Archives: New York

College/University (on campus), School / University

Ithaca, NY – University residence hall kitchen fire kept in check by sprinkler system

On Sunday, just before 1 p.m., Ithaca Firefighters, along with Cornell University Environmental Health and Safety workers to the Alice Cook House, a residential dorm on University Avenue for a kitchen fire. The cause of the fire was found to be boxes left on the stove which ignited, setting the third-floor kitchen ablaze. Luckily, a working sprinkler system was in place and kept the fire at bay until firefighters were able to arrive on the scene. 

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Binghamton, NY – Early morning fire at beverage store kept in check by fire sprinkler system; No injuries reported

An early morning fire damaged a beverage store on Main Street in Binghamton, not far from the Johnson City line.

A blaze at the Beer Depot was reported at 12:41 AM, both by alarms in the building and passersby who saw thick smoke billowing out the front and rear of the building.

No one was inside the building at the time and firefighters were able to bring the fire under control.

A sprinkler system helped to keep it from spreading to the adjacent Lane’s Liquor Store, although that building did suffer smoke damage.

Fire officials say they believe they have narrowed down the cause, which does not appear to be suspicious, but need to await a visit tomorrow by investigators from the News State Department of Ag and Markets, before officially releasing a cause.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Southport, NY – Sprinkler system extinguished manufacturing fire before fire crews arrived

Southport Fire official Mike Smith says that an industrial air compressor failed at the Elmira Stamping and Manufacturing Tuesday morning.

Employees evacuated and a sprinkler system extinguished the fire before Southport and City of Elmira firefighters arrived.

UPDATE (8:08 a.m.) The fire has been put out. Fire crews are still on the scene to complete overhaul and clean-up.

According to the Southport Fire Department, the cause of the fire is unknown at this time. No injuries or damage to the building has been reported so far. 

The Southport and Pine City fire departments were on scene early Wednesday morning for a reported structure fire at 1704 Cedar Street in Southport.

Smoke can be seen around the Elmira Stamping Manufacturing Co. building. The call came in just before 7 a.m.

Our 18 News reporter on the scene says the smoke has decreased significantly. 

Apartment Building, Residential

Ithaca, NY – Overnight fire at off-campus apartment held in check by sprinkler system

A busy night for the Ithaca Fire Department on Saturday night into Sunday. According to the Ithaca Fire Department, crews responded to both a fire on the city’s South Hill and a water rescue on Six Mile Creek. Firefighters were first called to College Circle Apartments around 11:30 p.m. after an air conditioner caught fire. The buildings sprinkler system kept things at bay until crews could fully extinguish the flames. No one was injured.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Albany, NY – Sprinkler system knocks down fire in supermarket pharmacy

Supervisors investigating damage after supermarket fire. Customers were inside when the fire broke out. Albany fire officials said when they arrived at the scene, there were many half filled shopping carts left in the aisles and check out lines, but everyone was able to get out safely. “We received a call for a fire at Hannaford,” said Albany Fire Department Batallion Chief, Greg Sokaris.”It turned out that it was a small electrical fire, refrigeration units in the pharmacy.” Albany fire fighters had trouble accessing the pharmacy since it was closed at the time when the flames broke out. The sprinkler system was able to knock down a majority of the blaze. The health department will also be assessing the damage to determine what products are salvageable.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Blasdell, NY – Fire in retail storage room at shopping mall is put out by sprinkler system

The McKinley Mall will not open until noon Thursday due to a fire in the storage room in the New York & Co. store. No one was hurt in the fire, according to Town of Hamburg Emergency Services Manager Sean Crotty. New York & Co. will be closed indefinitely; other nearby stores were affected, Crotty said. The cause of the fire is under investigation. The call from mall security of smoke at New York & Co. came in at 8:24 a.m., Crotty said. He said crews located the fire in the storage room and “experienced heavy smoke conditions.“

Several fire companies responded to a fire in the New York & Co. store at the McKinley Mall. (Keith McShea/Buffalo News). Crotty said flames and “fire conditions” were extinguished by the sprinkler system. Crews were able to get everyone out of the mall safely, he said. “Initially we had some mallwalkers that were walking around and we had some challenge with getting them to evacuate the building,” he said, “but we did get everybody out of the mall safely.“

Hotel / Motel, Residential

Binghamton, NY – Early morning arson fire at boarding house extinguished by sprinkler system

The Binghamton Police Department says a man has been charged with intentionally setting a fire on Henry Street. Police say the fire at 106 Henry Street, the “DIXIE 2000” rooming house, was reported at 6:16 a.m. Monday. According to detectives, an investigation found that the first-floor office was broken into before being doused with a liquid accelerant and ignited, which caused an explosion and significant damage. Officials say the fire was extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system and all residents got out safely. Police say the suspect, who had left before officers arrived, was later identified as 59-year-old Jerry Hopkins of neighboring 104 Henry Street.

He was charged with second-degree arson, a class B felony. The incident was investigated by the Binghamton Police Patrol and Detective Divisions as well as the Fire Marshal’s Office. State Fire K-9 also assisted at the scene. Anyone with additional information is asked to call detectives at (607) 772-7080.

ORIGINAL STORY:

BINGHAMTON (WBNG) — Police and fire officials were called to a fire on Henry Street in Binghamton Monday morning.

According to Binghamton Fire Marshal Alan Gardiner, the sprinkler system inside 106 Henry Street put out the fire.

Gardiner said investigators haven’t determined a cause for the fire, but he called it suspicious.

Members of the Binghamton Fire Department, Binghamton Police Department and New York State fire officials responded to the scene.

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Glen Falls, NY – Fire at tissue paper mill contained with help from sprinkler system

Firefighters from several local departments responded to a fire at the Essity Tissue mill in South Glens Falls late Sunday and early Monday, but the mill was up and running as of Monday morning. The fire was initially reported as a fire in a conveyor. No injuries were reported.

No exterior damage was evident from the blaze, which was reported around 10 p.m. Sunday. Firefighters from South Glens Falls, Hudson Falls and West Glens Falls were called to the scene, and remained there until 1 a.m. or so. Calls to the mill and the South Glens Falls Fire Department were not immediately returned Monday morning.

A public relations company emailed a statement later Monday that reported no part of the building was damaged, and the plant’s sprinkler system was triggered by a fire caused by an electrical issue. “No part of the building was damaged. An electrical junction box shorted and the arc caused a fire along the tray just below the roof. The facility was evacuated as a precaution,” plant manager Steve Duell was quoted in the statement as saying. The mill has had a history of small machine fires, with six between 2007 and 2012.

Restaurant, Retail, Shopping Mall

Huntington Station, NY – Restaurant fire in strip mall extinguished by sprinkler system

Multiple fire departments were on the scene of a fire at a strip mall in Huntington Station last Friday afternoon. Suffolk Police say a 911 call came in at 2:46 p.m. reporting a fire at 1760 New York Ave.

“Manor firefighters responded to a report of smoke from a building on New York Ave and West Hills Road on Friday afternoon. Chief Chuck Brady determined that heavy smoke was coming from the Don Juan Pupuseria and transmitted a working fire. Firefighters entered the building and searched for the seat of the fire. A fire was found to be burning in the kitchen. A majority of the fire was extinguished by a sprinkler system with a crew from Engine 3 hitting remaining hot spots. We were assisted by Huntington and Melville firefighters at the scene and Greenlawn firefighters stood by at Manors Headquarters. Huntington Community First Aid Squad provided an E.M S. standby at the scene. There were no reported injuries. All units were under the command of Chief Jon Hoffman.”

College/University (on campus), Residence Hall/Dormitory, Residential

New York, NY – Overnight fire in college residence hall extinguished by sprinkler system; Fire started in trash compactor room

At around 12:30 am last Monday night, or early Tuesday morning, a fire broke out at The Towers at CCNY, forcing all of its residents to evacuate. This event marks the second major incident this year involving the activation of the sprinkler system.

The blaring alarm woke many of the residents, who rushed to evacuate the building. Among them was Resident Assistant William Dadario. After waking up and seeing his fellow RAs post photos of flooding from the sprinklers in their group chat, he knew it was not just a drill.

He said in a brief interview, “Usually, if you get the alarm you don’t always get the [sprinkler] suppression system, just because the suppression system is only triggered when flames actually are licking the sprinkler heads themselves. So I knew it was probably something serious.”

Dadario and other residents reported seeing and smelling smoke coming from the trash chutes on the first floor. The fire appears to have originated in the compactor room, though the cause is still officially unknown.

The sprinkler system was able to extinguish the fire before it could spread, though some areas, including student’s rooms, near the area flooded in the process. Luckily, the sprinklers in the trash rooms are independent of the rest of the system for this very purpose. This specialization meant there was significantly less damage than the incident in October, where sprinkler systems were triggered in several rooms.

Meanwhile, the crowd of residents outside was growing cold and restless. In the rush to evacuate, many were unable to put on clothes appropriate for the freezing weather. Some had nothing more than light pajamas. Others were in flip-flops, lacking socks to protect themselves against the cold.

Public Safety directed everyone to take refuge in the cafés of the research buildings, anticipating a long wait for the fire department and RAs to handle the situation inside. After some time, those residents were falsely told that the doors were open and they could return to their rooms. The crowd then gathered just outside the doors until they were allowed in, nearly an hour after the evacuation began.

Inside the building, the elevators were out of order and residents took the stairs to their rooms in the 10-story dormitory. Eventually, the majority of residents were back in their rooms, and the RA team was helping those who were locked out. The bulk of the crisis was over for the night, while worries linger for those impacted by the flooding.