Tag Archives: New York

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Middletown, NY – Fire in hospital’s kitchen extinguished by sprinkler system

One employee was hurt by an explosion while attempting to light a stove in the kitchen at Orange Regional Medical Center Thursday morning. Dominick Guardino, chief of special operations for the Mechanicstown Fire Department, said the explosion was followed by a small fireball, but the fire was quickly contained by the hospital’s sprinkler system. “We just shut off the gas and electric when we got there,” Guardino said. Several mutual aid companies who were responding to the scene were canceled because they were not needed. The injured employee was taken to the emergency room at ORMC. Guardino referred questions about the employee’s condition to the Town of Wallkill Police Department, which is investigating the fire. No one at the police department could be reached immediately.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Rochester, NY – Sprinkler system suppresses Christmas Eve fire at electronics manufacturer

A Rochester electronics manufacturer that suffered a Christmas Eve fire won’t be able to reopen Wednesday.  Instead, general manager Michael Schlehr said a few workers will be cleaning up and assessing the damage from a two-alarm fire Monday at Coast to Coast Circuits, 205 La Grange Ave.  Firefighters responded to an automatic alarm at around 4:30 p.m. Monday. Smoke was visible when the first crew arrived. A second alarm was called at 4:54 p.m. and a level 0 hazmat emergency also was called. The fire was under control at 5:36 p.m.

The business, which employs nearly 40 people, was closed for Christmas Eve.  “Nobody was hurt,” Schlehr said. “Nobody was affected physically. We’re thankful about that. In terms of the business, we’re very saddened. It’s a very tight-knit group of people.”  The facility is the New York division for Coast to Coast Circuits, which according to its website makes advanced printed circuit boards. Customers include the aerospace, defense, semiconductor, medical and wireless industries.  It was founded in 1974 and was called Metro Circuits before being rebranded a few years ago.  A division opened in Huntington Beach, California, in the early 1980s. In 1989, the two operations were incorporated into one privately held company, according to the website.

Schlehr, who also is chief financial officer of the company, said that 18 months ago, the ownership group was talked out of closing the La Grange site. Schlehr said the company downsized and turned things around. “Over the last 18 months we came together and did a great job. We became profitable consistently and the ownership group has really noticed that. We banded together and functioned as a team. It’s sad to see this happen.”

The building’s sprinkler system put out most of the fire.  “I can’t say enough about the city firefighters,” Schlehr said. “They were fabulous. They were there in force and strong. They kept us apprised all the time. They were very safe.”

Schlehr said he initially thought things weren’t too bad. “When you get in there, there’s a lot of damage. The smoke and the residue left by the smoke is very damaging to electronic equipment and circuit boards, and that’s our business.”  He said it may take several days to determine the condition of the high-tech and precision manufacturing equipment and the finished products.  “Unless it’s perfect, it’s unshippable,” he said. “That’s a concern.”

Schlehr said it’s too soon to know what caused the fire. According to a fire department news release, the fire began in the plate room. Fire spread to the roof, overhead vents and PVC pipes, compromising containers of sulfuric acid. The hazmat emergency was declared because water came into contact with the acid. Firefighters entered and contained the leaks.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Henrietta, NY – Fire contained by sprinkler system at manufacturing plant

A fire broke out Sunday morning at ORAFOL Precision Technology Solutions in Henrietta shortly after 6:30 a.m. .

The Henrietta Fire District said the fire was contained to an area of the building that contained an 800-gallon container of Sodium Hydroxide which is a chemical used in the manufacturing process to clean machinery.

According to fire crews, the fire was contained by the buildings fire sprinkler system but was not fully extinguished. Fire crews fully extinguished the fire quickly while using extinguishers and hose lines.

A Level 1 Haz-Mat was declared due to the chemicals involved in the fire and mixed in with the sprinkler water run-off, which brought a full response from the Monroe County Fire Bureau’s Haz-Mat team.

Henrietta Fire said there was never a threat to the public as a result of the fire or chemicals involved.

Crews will remain on site to monitor the air and water in addition to helping come up with a plan to clean the contaminated water from the building.

Henrietta Fire was assisted by Monroe County Sheriffs, the Monroe County Fire Bureau, Gates, Chili, Pittsford, Honeoye Falls, and East Avon fire departments; as well as CHS Ambulance and Monroe Ambulance. 

Athletic Club/Sports Facility, Other Business

East Hampton, NY – Fire at indoor tennis building contained by sprinkler system

Detectives are investigating a fire that broke out in an office building at East Hampton Indoor Tennis on Saturday morning — the second fire at the complex this year. 

At 5:01 a.m., the East Hampton Fire Department was called to an automatic fire alarm inside a building that houses the complex’s office at 174 Daniel’s Hole Road, near the East Hampton Airport. Brian Stanis, the second assistant fire chief, arrived to find “a heavy smoke condition” coming from the building, according to Chief Gerard Turza. He called for the rest of the Fire Department to respond. 

“Firefighters found the remnants of a fire inside of the structure that had been contained by the building’s fire sprinkler system,” Chief Turza said. 

He would not comment about the extent of the damage. There were signs of minor exterior damage to the building, including darkened siding, a blown out window, and damage to the door.

The chief would only say, “The cause and origin of the fire is currently under investigation by the East Hampton Town Fire Marshal’s office.”

Police set up yellow crime scene around the building. Suffolk police detectives were on scene, along with East Hampton Town police and the fire marshal. 

East Hampton Village Ambulance Association were also called to the fire. No injuries were reported, though. 

East Hampton firefighters responded to a fire in a different building in the East Hampton Indoor Tennis complex in January.  A corroded pipe leaked gas into a wooden building and, at the time, investigators said that it appeared that when a heater went on, it ignited the gas. There was extensive damage to that building, which was quickly repaired. The other buildings, including a bowling alley and sports bar that were being built on the property and have since opened, were not damaged.

It was business as usual at East Hampton Indoor Tennis and the Clubhouse Saturday morning. Scott Rubenstein, the managing partner, could not immediately be reached for comment. 

Other / Not Specified, Other Business

Jamestown, NY – Fire at cleaning technology business contained by sprinkler system

A fire at a Jamestown business is under investigation.

Jamestown firefighters were called to a box alarm at Blackstone-NEY Ultrasonics, 9 N. Main St., on Saturday around 3:30 p.m. Upon arrival, crews reported finding smoke venting near the rear of the structure.

According to the department, a fire was located inside the cleaning technology business. However, the blaze was mostly contained to one area due to a working sprinkler system.

Off-shift firefighters were called in to assist; crews were on scene for about two hours.

The cause of the fire is being investigated by the Jamestown Fire Investigation Team. An update wasn’t available Sunday.

Blackstone-NEY Ultrasonics could not be reached for comment.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Olean, NY – Machinery fire at cutlery manufacturer controlled with help from sprinkler system

No injuries were reported after the Olean Fire Department responded to a machinery fire at Cutco Tuesday night.  The initial response was made at 7:30 p.m. to a fire alarm at the main building of the cutlery manufacturer’s East State Street campus. According to Olean Fire Chief Robert Bell, the blaze, which occurred in a polishing room, was under control within approximately 15 minutes. A call indicating the alarm system had been reset came over the emergency scanner at 8:17 p.m.  “The employees at Cutco controlled the fire with a dry chemical fire extinguisher,” Bell said, adding sprinkler heads also helped contain the flames. “We showed up, we made entry, knocked down the remaining bits of the fire, and then helped with the mop-up.”  According to communications over the scanner, some material in the polishing room caught on fire when a buffer wheel ignited.  Bell said the damage was limited to that polishing machine, but the cost of the damage was unknown. He added that Cutco had two other polishing machines, so their operations would likely not be greatly affected.

Other / Not Specified

Utica, NY – Sprinkler system keeps fire in abandoned building from spreading; Firefighters extinguish flames

Fire officials continue to investigate the fire that broke out at an abandoned building in Utica’s brewery district last weekend. Just before 10 a.m. last Saturday, fire crews were called to the building on Stark Street, near the F.X. Matt Brewery, after a person walking by noticed smoke coming from the building. When crews arrived on scene, they found flames and heavy smoke coming from the fourth floor of the building.  Fire officials say that the quick-acting fire could have been much worse, but crews worked quickly to put the fire out without much damage.

“There was a lot of contents up on the fourth floor that had the potential to catch fire,” said Scott Ingersoll, interim chief of the Utica Fire Department. “Fortunately,the sprinkler system activated and it was able to keep the fire contained. And what our firefighters did was go in and finish putting it out.”  Officials are still working to determine the cause of the fire.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Rochester, NY – Sprinkler system contains fire at assisted living center

Dawn Laesser considers the residents at Shire Assisted Living family.  Her daughter serves as administrator there and, when Dawn heard about the fire that forced part of the complex to evacuate, she jumped right in to help.

She started by gathering clothes.

“It was a blessing no lives were lost,” Laesser said. “It gives me chills thinking about it because they’re like family to us.”

Some of those residents are being housed elsewhere in the building.  The Ridge Culver Fire Department says about 160 residents in all were evacuated from the basement, first and second floors.  This type of evacuation can be tricky because this building is what’s considered a high-hazard occupancy, with the people inside needing assistance getting out.

 “A lot of them have difficulty with mobility, they’re wheelchair bound or they have a walker to assist them, so they’re not able to move quickly, they’re not able to necessarily remove themselves easily from the location,” said Chief Steven Sessler of the Ridge Culver Fire Department.

Four residents and a firefighter were taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

The fire chief says recent updates to the building’s fire alarm and sprinkler systems made a world of difference in getting everyone out safely and quickly.  

“That sprinkler activated properly and was able to contain the fire and keep it at a small state until we could get in there and extinguish it so that’s extremely helpful,” Sessler said.

He also credited the fast action of police, fire and ambulance crews from around the area that answered the call to assist in the evacuation.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Irondequoit, NY – Nursing home fire contained by sprinkler system

Several people were forced from their homes Wednesday night after a fire at a nursing home in Irondequoit.

It happened around 8 p.m. at the Shire at Culverton Adult Home. The fire forced more than 100 vulnerable residents to evacuate.

Everyone was safe and sound except for one firefighter who suffered minor heat exhaustion. As for the residents, they’ve been moved back into the facility.

After further investigation, it was discovered that a fire broke out in one of the rooms and was contained to that room only. However, a dozen other rooms actually sustained water damage and that’s why so many residents are displaced.

News10NBC was told the home has extra space so those with damaged rooms will be moved somewhere else within the facility for the night.

If there isn’t enough room, some people will be moved to another home.

Because most of the residents have health issues, a number of first responders were on scene to make sure they were ok.

“At the time, we had a fire in the building, a smoke condition in the building. The sprinkler had activated and the fire alarm had activated so, it was a matter of safety precaution. We decided to empty the building. We assessed the situation and dealt with it,” said Chief Steve Sessler, Ridge Culver Fire District:

There is no word on when the water damage will be repaired or what actually caused the fire in the first place.

Apartment Building, Residential, Residential High Rise

Massena, NY – Kitchen fire in high-rise apartment complex suppressed by sprinkler system

Building sprinkler system douses kitchen fire at Massena high-rise apartment complex.  The building’s sprinkler system was able to douse a kitchen fire late Saturday night on the eighth floor of the Laurel Terrace high-rise apartment complex.  Massena volunteer and permanent firefighters were called out to an alarm activation at 10:47 p.m. at Laurel Terrace. First Assistant Chief Paul Brownell said that when they arrived on the scene, they found smoke and water on the eighth floor.

“The sprinkler above the stove had gone off and extinguished it. We had a lot of water with that,” he said.  Firefighters spent the next few hours halting the water flow from the sprinkler system, evacuating residents from apartments that were damaged by water, checking on residents that had sheltered in place, securing the building’s utilities and assisting the Massena Rescue Squad with patient triage for smoke inhalation. The Massena Police Department was also on the scene.

“We were trying to get the residents to stay in place. A lot of them like to move around,” Mr. Brownell said.

He said they advised residents who remained in the building to stay in place and not move around so they could be contacted.

Firefighters initially used the building’s interior staircase to get up to the eighth floor and back to ground level again. They used a high-rise kit with hoses specifically designed for those types of emergencies.

“We try not to use the elevator,” Mr. Brownell said.

Once they determined there was no danger, the elevator was put back into service again to get residents back to their rooms.

Tenants were able to return to their apartments, and no temporary housing was required despite any water damage their apartment may have suffered.

“Nobody had a problem with that,” he said.