Tag Archives: Night (9pm-5am)

Apartment Building, Residential

Victoria, BC, Canada – Apartment cooking fire doused by sprinkler system

A Victoria apartment suite is heavily water damaged after a sprinkler system doused a stove-top oil fire and then drowned the rest of the room.  Alarm bells sounded at 9:30 Sunday evening at 710 Queens Avenue when an oil fire ignited, according to Victoria Fire Battalion Chief Dave Bicknell.   The lone occupant of the suite had been cooking french fries in oil on the stovetop at the time of the fire.  

“The fire was likely caused by overheating of the oil,” Bicknell said, in his report.  The sprinkler system extinguished the kitchen fire but continued to flow until fire crews were able to shut it down.  “There was some damage to the suite caused by smoke and heat, however the fire itself had been contained to the pot,” Bicknell said. The building on the corner of Douglas Street is run by the Victoria Cool Aid Society

Apartment Building, Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Lancaster, OH – Sprinkler system helps contain overnight fire at senior apartment complex; No injuries

A 36-unit apartment complex had to be evacuated Sunday morning after a fire started on the second story of the three-story building. Lancaster firefighter Pete Anson says the call came in just after 1:00 a.m. Sunday at the Canal Place Senior Apartments. The fire department was notified after the smoke alarm and sprinkler systems were activated. Anson says crews arrived on scene in four minutes.

“We had a lot of elderly patients on the second and third floors,” he said. Residents in the complex were already trying to get out as smoke started to fill the second floor hallway. Because the elevator went out, it wasn’t easy for many wheelchair dependent tenants.

“On our way in we did encounter a female in the stairwell dragging her wheelchair down,” he said.

The firefighter says he and his team began getting people outside and, in some cases, literally carried those who couldn’t walk.

“It was difficult and challenging to get 30, 40 [people] out at one time,” he said. “But the guys last night worked really hard and were able to get everybody out.”

Anson says the fire started on the second floor. An apartment manager would not let 10TV cameras inside to see the damaged area, but Anson says a charred couch that now sits outside the building came from the room where it all started.

Cleanup crews were at the building Sunday trying to dry the water-soaked floors. Also, the America Red Cross Ohio Buckeye Region says three families were assisted and received immediate emergency lodging.

According to the building manager and firefighters, no one in the building was injured. Anson says the cause of the fire is under investigation. Fire Chief David Ward tells 10TV at last check the Canal Place Senior Apartments did meet fire code.

Apartment Building, Residential

Oviedo, FL – Overnight fire in three-story apartment building stopped by sprinkler system

Firefighters said a burning candle started a fire Tuesday morning at an apartment building in the Oviedo area of unincorporated Seminole County.  The Seminole County Fire Department said the fire broke out around 2:09 a.m. in a first floor unit of the three-story building.

When firefighters arrived, an audible alarm was going off, and residents had evacuated their apartments safely.  Once inside, firefighters determined the sprinkler system stopped the fire.  The American Red Cross is providing assistance to one occupant.

Food Processing, Manufacturing

Erlanger, KY – Following explosion at candy factory, sprinklers assist in controlling fires inside building

An explosion and fire at a Boone County candy factory is under investigation. Erlanger residents told WLWT they heard an explosion that shook their homes around 3 a.m. Friday.

 “Shortly after the first unit got out of the station, they could actually see the fire from the station,” Point Pleasant Fire Department Asst. Chief Bill Martin said.

Flames could be seen shooting out of the three-alarm fire at the Perfetti Van Melle plant. The factory makes all of the Airheads candy for North America. Officials said the silo that handles sugar for candy making exploded.

“Anytime you’re dealing with any kind of dust or whatever, you have a chance of explosion – that’s always a hazard in that kind of operation – there’s all kinds of dust hazards – this just happens to involve a sugar product,” Martin said.   Hundreds of employees made it out safely as dust in the form of sugar filled the air.

“They heard the explosion and took the necessary steps and made the call and got themselves out,” President and CEO PVM USA Mehmet Yuksek said.  The fire was brought under control around 4:30 a.m.

“I think the sprinkler system did its job for the most part. The fire that we saw and that was extinguished with the ladder pipe that we had up. The involvement inside the building was actually very limited by the sprinkler system,” said Point Pleasant Assistant Chief Bill Martin.

Meanwhile, employees were told to stay home on Friday.  Parfetti Van Melle President Mehmet Yuksek arrived on the scene early Friday morning.

“We’re actually trying to put the call on everyone, including the office and the first shift not to come because we won’t be operational. Until we know exactly what the damages are and what we need to do, we won’t be making any production,” said Yuksek.

Investigators are still trying to determine a cause.

Government/Military, Other-Government/Military

Ocean City, MD – Sprinklers praised for stopping fire at town’s Service Center Warehouse

Fire sprinklers in an Ocean City building are attributed to a quickly put out fire last week.

Around 1:30 a.m. Nov. 22, the Ocean City Fire Department was dispatched to an automatic fire alarm at the town’s Service Center Warehouse on 65th Street, according to a press release.

“By these two fire sprinklers activating, city ambulances, police cars, busses, street sweepers, and other essential equipment was saved,” Fire Marshal David W. Hartley said in the release. “This example shows the huge impact sprinklers have not just in a home, but also in reducing the average loss of property during a fire in a commercial structure.”

When firefighters arrived, they found the 12,000 square foot vehicle garage filled with smoke. The call for service was upgraded to a building fire, according to the release, which brought additional fire and EMS resources.

Firefighters found two sprinkler heads that were activated extinguished the fire before the department was dispatched.

On-scene investigation showed the fire started due to a machine malfunction and was classified accidental. The building was unoccupied at the time of the fire.

Apartment Building, Residential

Miami, FL – Sprinklers help stop fire on 10th floor of off-campus apartment building

Hundreds of Florida International University students were evacuated from an apartment building near campus early Thursday morning after a fire broke out while someone was cooking.

Witnesses told Local 10 News that a grease fire sparked the flames on the 10th floor of 109 Tower along Southwest 109th Avenue at Seventh Street after midnight. Much of the floor was damaged by fire and other parts of the building suffered water damage from the sprinkler system.

No one was injured, but many residents stayed up all night searching for a place to sleep.

“That’s what I’m doing right now,” one student told Local 10 News. “I’m about to go hike to go sleep on a couch.”

Jaime Zapata, who lives in the off-campus housing, told Local 10 News that students were told to pack their bags and plan to be out of the building for two days. Many of them left the building without identification and were worried because they have finals to study for and take.

“They’ve had us out here since about 2 or 3 in the morning, telling us that we can’t go back inside because it’s not safe,” student Analee Wharton said.

Susan Jennings, vice president of EdR Collegiate Housing, which owns the apartment building, said the majority of students have been allowed to return to their rooms. She said the students who lived in the apartment where the fire occurred and near the apartment have been put up in a hotel by the company.

According to Jennings, the sprinkler system was activated for about 20 minutes after the fire broke out.

FIU authorities said 109 Tower resumed normal operations Tuesday night.

Department Store, Retail

Walla Walla, WA – Sprinkler system helps extinguish fire at Cascade Farm & Outdoor Store

The Cascade Farm and Outdoor Store in Walla Walla will be temporarily closed while water/smoke damage from a small fire is assessed and cleaned up.

A display heater caught fire around 11 PM Friday night causing isolated smoke damage and water damage from an activated sprinkler system. While initial reports describe a small amount of damage, the store will be closed until further notice.

Other Business

Stevens Point, WI – Overnight equipment fire at publishing company contained by sprinkler system

A fire caused minor damage to a local publishing company early Monday morning, but no one was hurt.  Firefighters responded to Worzalla Publishing, located at 3535 Jefferson St., at about 2:30 a.m. and extinguished the fire, though most of the flames had been contained by a sprinkler system, said Stevens Point Fire Capt. Jodi Baganz.

The fire was caused by a piece of equipment that overheated after a motor failure and started paper on fire, Baganz said. There was smoke and water damage to some of the equipment, but the company was able to continue operating after the fire was put out, Baganz said.

There were people inside the building when the fire started, but no one was injured in the incident, Baganz said.

 

Office Building, Other Business

Las Vegas, NV – Suspicious fire at business doused by sprinkler system

A man stole a security guard’s truck while the guard was responding to a fire alarm Wednesday morning. The guard was doing a routine check when a fire alarm started going off. He then found a suspicious man standing around who he believes was trying to break into a business.  The man said he just got out of the hospital and wants to get to California.  While the guard was questioning him, the man then took off with the guard’s truck, which was still running.   “He bolted back to my truck and took off with it,” said Otis Linton, the security guard.

The fire started around 1 a.m. in the 6100 block of Brent Thurman Way, near Sunset Road and the 215 Beltway. Upon arrival, firefighters saw no visible fire or smoke coming from the structure but the sprinklers were activated. There was a small fire in offices that were under construction.  The fire is under investigation.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Williamson, WV – No injuries in overnight nursing home fire controlled with help from sprinkler system

The Williamson Fire Department (WPD) responded to an emergency call at Trinity Health Care in East Williamson after a faulty wire in a heating unit triggered an alarm.  The cause of the problem was revealed to be in one of the heating units.  A wire had melted and caused the unit to over-heat, according to the WFD report.

The call came in around 2:00 a.m. Lt. Stephen Casey of the Williamson Fire Department was assisted by the Williamson Police Department (WPD), the Chattaroy Volunteer Fire Department (CVFD) and Elite Ambulance service.  Williamson Fire Chief Joey Carey said, “The staff worked along with us to make ensure the residents safety. They had an emergency plan in place and they did a good job following procedure.”

Upon arrival, firefighters noticed minor smoke. A quick investigation revealed no fire but the smell of heated electrical equipment indicated the source of the problem, according to WFD Chief Joey Carey.  Firefighters ventilated the area. The WPD, CVFD firefighters, and Trinity Health Care staff worked together to evacuate residence to a safe area.

No medical incidents were reported and residents were moved back to their rooms within 45 minutes, according to Carey. “It could have been a lot worse,” Carey said. He credited the fire walls and sprinkler system in the attic of the facility with keeping the structure and residents within safe. The firewalls separate sections in the building and isolate any potential problems, according to Carey.