Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant Salisbury, MD – Sprinklers contain overnight fire at LaQuinta Inn & Suites; No injuries reported July 14, 2016 viking210 An early Thursday morning fire at the LaQuinta Inn & Suites in Salisbury forced the evacuation of hundreds of people, authorities said. According to the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office, the fire broke out at around 1 a.m. in the kitchen storage area of the hotel, located at 300 S. Salisbury Blvd. An automatic fire alarm went off and a fire sprinkler activated, according to investigators. It took 20 firefighters from the Salisbury Fire Department approximately half an hour to get the blaze under control. However, authorities said the sprinkler activation contained the fire to the area of origin. There were no reported injuries. The fire caused an estimated $10,000 in damage to the structure and another $500 in damage to its contents. Authorities ruled the fire accidental and said it was caused by the spontaneous combustion of dish towels. The hotel was at full capacity at the time of the fire with several hundred occupants, according to Salisbury Assistant Fire Chief Bryan Records. Records also mentioned that many of the people at the hotel were there because of the USSSA softball tournament happening in Salisbury this week. Just about everyone evacuated the hotel on their own without any incidents, but Records said firefighters doing a sweep from room to room had to escort a handful of people, and a few dogs, out of the hotel. Everyone was let back inside the hotel by around 2:30 a.m. Records added that the hotel would not be serving its usual continental breakfast Thursday morning as the kitchen would remain closed until the Health Department could come to expect it.
Food Processing, Manufacturing Kansas City, KS – Sprinklers activate in blaze at Kellogg plant after oven malfunction July 12, 2016 viking210 Three firefighters were treated for heat-related illness after fighting a fire July 6 at the Kellogg plant at 801 Sunshine Road in the Fairfax area of Kansas City, Kan. Damage to the plant and its product were estimated at $1.5 million, the Kansas City, Kan., Fire Department spokesman said. The building was valued at $60 million before the fire. There were no injuries to the plant workers when the fire broke out, according to the Fire Department spokesman. The plant, which makes Cheez-Its, was in production at the time of the fire. The plant is currently closed while it is being cleaned up, according to the Fire Department, and it is estimated to be closed for several days to a week. Health officials will need to inspect it before it reopens. The plant’s workers were in the process of being evacuated when firefighters arrived, the spokesman said. The call came in around 9:01 p.m. Wednesday, with the first firefighters arriving about 3 minutes later. The Fire Department spokesman said the fire started in one of the ovens at the plant that malfunctioned. The plant has four ovens, around 400 feet long, with a conveyor belt through them. The sprinkler system activated during the fire. The fire was near the end of one of the ovens, and the product was burning there, the spokesman said. The Fire Department spokesman estimated that the firefighters faced temperatures of 120 to 130 degrees inside the building during the fire. It was also hot outdoors.
Other - Retail, Retail Gaylord, MI – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in containing fire at fireworks store July 7, 2016 viking210 Fire crews in Otsego County had to rush to save a fireworks store after a fire ignited overnight. The Otsego County Fire Department says the fire started just before midnight in Gaylord. The Otsego County fire chief says if they didn’t have a sprinkler system, the result could have been much different. Crews were able to contain the fire in about a half an hour Tuesday night.
Apartment Building, Residential Sioux City, IA – Apartment bedroom fire extinguished by single sprinkler July 6, 2016 viking210 An apartment sprinkler was able to extinguish a small fire in a Sioux City apartment complex Friday night prior to the arrival of firefighters, officials say. According to a Sioux City Fire Rescue news release, firefighters responded to an alarm at Prestwick Apartments, 4230 Hickory Lane, shortly before 10 p.m. Friday. After investigating, firefighters located a single sprinkler head spraying water in a bedroom in one of the apartments. Firefighters stopped the water and found remains of a small fire that had occurred on the dresser, the release said. The occupant of the apartment was not home. Upon investigation, the firefighters traced the source of the fire to an unattended candle. Damage was limited to the top of the dresser and a television near the candle, the release said. Officials say sprinklers in buildings significantly reduce fire loss and deaths.
Primary / Secondary School, School / University Fort Worth, TX – Sprinklers activate after books set on fire during elementary school break-in June 29, 2016 viking210 There has been a break-in and six classrooms vandalized on the campus of a Crowley Independent School District elementary school. The vandalism happened at Meadowcreek Elementary in Fort Worth, where Monday cleanup crews were busy mopping up. In all, six rooms received water damage after fires caused the sprinkler system to go off. In addition to damage inside the school, graffiti was also spray-painted outside the building. On what is supposed to be summer vacation, school officials are back on the Meadowbrook campus to oversee the cleanup of charred debris from burned books and school supplies. According to a Crowley ISD spokesperson, the school was broken into and the books set on fire around 3 a.m. Monday. Right now, investigators are also looking in to whether several computer monitors were also stolen. School cameras captured video of the suspect. It’s since been turned over to Fort Worth police. Crowley district spokesperson Anthony Kirchner explained that the cleanup is expected to take a couple of weeks. “It is disheartening to see that someone would cause this kind of damage and we want to make sure that person is apprehended,” he said adding that the summer break gives the district time for cleanup, repairs and equipment replacement. “This happened at a time when no students or teachers were here and we have plenty of time to get everything back.” This isn’t the first time vandals have struck at Meadowcreek. This past Friday a window was broken at the school. It isn’t known if the two cases are connected. Classes resume in the Crowley ISD on August 22.
Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential Arcola, IL – Fire at senior living facility contained to one room by sprinkler system June 29, 2016 viking210 In a fire minutes count. Practice and training pay off. On Saturday morning at about 1:30am staff at Carriage Crossing in the Green Mill Village development in Arcola noticed smoke. Within moments are fire sprinkler was activated and staff at the assisted living facility began evacuating residents near the area of the fire. With the help of firefighters all 46 residents were removed from the building. “Those individuals and those residents were out within seven minutes. So the training paid off. Everyone stayed very calm,” Cassie Yoder of Green Mill Village told WAND’s Doug Wolfe. “Residents were with the people they knew.” Residents are now housed in the adjoining Best Western Plus which is a sister property to Carriage Crossing. Residents and staff have settled in to a normal routine. On Monday, clean-up was underway. “Most of the damage is just from the sprinkler system and water damage,” said co-owner Jeff Bentley. “It’s contained to one room and at this point we don’t know what caused it yet.” Bentley says his company has constructed a new facility in Champaign that is similar to the one in Arcola. His staff is attempting to get state licensing to speed up so some of the residents can be moved to Champaign. The state fire marshal’s office was at Carriage Crossing on Monday attempting to determine a cause of the fire.
Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant Omaha, NE – Sprinkler system activates to help limit damage in overnight restaurant fire June 27, 2016 viking210 A fire early Wednesday in the kitchen of an Old Market restaurant did not appear to cause significant damage. But the blaze set off smoke alarms and a sprinkler system and forced the evacuation of a nearby nightclub, according to initial 911 dispatch reports. Roja Mexican Grill, 1212 Harney St., was closed when the fire was reported about 12:30 a.m. Police helped evacuate people from Parliament Pub.
Apartment Building, Residential Chesterfield, VA – Early morning apartment fire extinguished by sprinkler system June 23, 2016 viking210 A sprinkler system is being credited with quickly extinguishing a fire early Wednesday at an apartment building in Chesterfield. A fire was reported about 2:30 a.m. on the balcony of a third-floor apartment in the 4500 block of Valley Crest Drive, but the building’s sprinkler system extinguished the blaze before firefighters arrived, said Lt. Jason Elmore of Chesterfield County Fire and EMS. The fire was caused by a discarded cigarette, Elmore said. Damage was limited to a section of siding on the building. No one was injured, but the apartment building was evacuated while firefighters investigated the incident.
Office Building, Other Business Philadelphia, PA – Fire in downtown high-rise controlled by sprinkler system; No injuries June 22, 2016 viking210 A sprinkler system prevented a Center City Philadelphia high-rise fire from spreading early Tuesday morning. The blaze, believed to be electrical in nature, broke out shortly before 2 a.m. on the 18th floor of 2000 Market Street, said the Philadelphia Fire Department. Luckily no one was hurt as the sprinklers kicked in and doused the fire, said firefighters. Crews declared the blaze under control around 2:25 a.m. but hazmat crews remained at the 29-story building. The building, which opened in 1973, houses a slew of businesses including law firms, a restaurant and a Santander Bank branch.
Apartment Building, Residential Des Moines, IA – Sprinklers help knock down flames when fire breaks out in apartments above pizza parlor June 17, 2016 viking210 No injuries were reported after a fire forced the evacuation Wednesday night of the Elliott Apartments above Fong’s Pizza on Fourth Street downtown. Captain Mark Dooley of the Des Moines Fire Department said crews arrived around 10:30 p.m. to smoke and flames on the second floor of the six-story building and launched an “aggressive interior attack.” “The flames were knocked down some with the activated sprinkler system,” Dooley said, adding that it made the firefighters’ job a lot easier. Almost all of the residents were home at the time fire crews responded and all were evacuated by 11 p.m. At 12:15 a.m. Thursday, Dooley said crews were no longer actively working to put the fire out but were instead checking the building to make sure the fire didn’t spread. The heat was what was causing the most concern, Dooley said. When the fire started around 10:30 p.m., it was approximately 84 degrees in downtown Des Moines, according to the National Weather Service. “There are medic units here just for the care of the firefighters,” Dooley said. They brought in extra medical crews and supplies solely to assist the roughly 100 firefighters working inside the complex, making sure to check their temperatures and heart rates. No cause for the fire has been identified and the investigation continues. Dooley said Polk County’s emergency response teams helped residents find a place to stay for the night. Fourth Street, Walnut Street and parts of Court Avenue were reopened in time for Thursday morning traffic. Joe Swift, a resident on the fourth floor, said he was out of the building minutes after the fire alarm went off. He said the smoke got very thick in the stairwell when he reached the second floor, making it difficult to see. He commended the men and women of the Des Moines Fire Department, who were knocking on doors and assisting residents out of the building. “These guys do a great job, and the ladies too,” Swift said. “In old buildings like this, underneath all that carpeting is all wood. There’s lots to catch on to.” On Twitter, Fong’s promised to repay swift work by the fire department with free pizza.
