Tag Archives: Night (9pm-5am)

Apartment Building, Residential

Peterborough, ON, Canada – Third floor apartment fire extinguished with help from sprinkler system

Two people were displaced, following a fire on Anson Street last night.

Fire crews responded to reports of a fire at the apartment complex just before 930pm.

Officials say that they found a fire inside a unit on the third floor, and along with the buildings sprinkler system, they were able to extinguish the fire and confine it before it spread to other units.

The lone unit sustained some water damage, which led to the displacement of two people, one of which sustained minor fire related injuries and was treated and released on scene.

The cause of the fire is said to be accidental, and damage is pegged at $50,000.

Other - Retail, Retail

Peoria Heights, IL – Sprinkler system activated for fire at bakery

After sanding and finishing a set of stairs at Trefzger’s Bakery, owners Jeff and Martha Huebner tossed their oil-stained socks into a trash can and went home Sunday afternoon.

Hours later, the socks burst aflame, sparking a fire that caused as much as $250,000 in losses at the business, 4416 N. Prospect Road.

“The socks just started on fire by spontaneous combustion,” Jeff Huebner said. “It was just one of those weird things that we never would have imagined would happen.”

In their stocking feet Sunday afternoon, he and his wife used linseed oil to finish a set of worn stairs on the first floor of the two-story structure. When the job was done, they realized their socks were ruined.

“We just tossed them into the garbage and didn’t think anything of it,” he said.

But late Sunday, with the building unoccupied, the oily socks ignited inside the otherwise empty plastic can, said Peoria Heights Fire Chief Greg Walters. He said that oils like linseed oil, if compressed — such as within a clump of cloth materials, like socks — will heat up and catch the cloth on fire.

That is what occurred inside the Trefzger’s trash can, which melted next to cake-preparation table. A bag inside the can burned and melted, with embers falling onto cardboard boxes under the table. The boxes then caught fire, triggering a fire alarm and Trefzger’s sprinkler system just before 11:30 p.m.

As firefighters responded, Peoria Heights police spotted flames on the first floor of the building. Firefighters arrived to find the fire at the prep table, Walters said.

A crew stretched water lines inside to extinguish the fire, containing the fire damage to that area. The sprinkler system also helped slow the spread of the fire, Walters said. Assisting were firefighters from Peoria, West Peoria and Chillicothe, while Limestone Township firefighters provided back-up coverage.

Walters said that the structure sustained no damage from the actual fire. However, smoke and water damage is extensive, he said. The total loss — including cleanup, plus potential lost revenue and wages — is estimated between $100,000 and $250,000, Walters said.

After contacting his insurer, Jeff Huebner said the business will be closed for a couple of days while a cleanup service — already on the scene Monday morning — put the place back in working order. At the end of the cleanup, the Peoria City/County Health Department will examine the business to clear it for operations again.

On Oct. 13, 2016, Trefzger’s Bakery completed its nine-block move north on Prospect Road and opened for business inside a renovated, 121-year-old former bicycle factory.

Apartment Building, Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Savannah, GA – Overnight cooking fire at senior apartment building contained with help from sprinkler system

Ten residents of the Rose of Sharon apartments in Savannah cannot go home Sunday after a cooking fire triggered the sprinkler system and flooded several units Saturday night. It happened just after 11 p.m. Savannah Fire Rescue responded to the Rose of Sharon senior-living apartments. They say a resident on the fourth floor was cooking when a pot caught fire and activated the sprinkler system. He was transported to hospital for smoke inhalation. The water damage displaced 10 residents. Two residents sought assistance from the Red Cross. Eight found temporary housing on their own. Savannah Fire Rescue recommends that you never leave food unattended while it is cooking. Always set a timer as a reminder and turn the stove and oven off if you have to leave the house.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Palatine, IL – Sprinkler system extinguished fire at sushi restaurant

No injuries were reported after a kitchen fire early Sunday at a sushi restaurant in northwest suburban Palatine.

Firefighters responded at 12:21 a.m. to a fire alarm at Sushi Para, 1268 E. Dundee Road, according to the Palatine Fire Department. The fire started in the kitchen and was quickly put out by the building’s sprinkler system.

No one was injured, but the restaurant was left uninhabitable, the fire department said. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Mt. Juliet, TN – Sprinkler system contains fire at nursing home

Mt. Juliet firefighters went to a late-night kitchen fire at Mt. Juliet Nursing and Rehabilitation on Thursday after the commercial fire alarm and water-flow alarm system alerted them.

Emergency crews responded to the fire at about 10:40 p.m. at 2650 N. Mt. Juliet Road and found fire in a trashcan and several boxes in the nursing facility’s kitchen. The facility’s sprinkler system contained the fire, and responding firefighters used a 2.5-gallon water extinguisher to finish the job.

Firefighters checked each room of the facility to ensure there was no additional fire or smoke, and they found the facility was safe with no injuries reported. No residents were evacuated, and the facility remained safe and operational after crews left the scene.

Mt. Juliet police and Wilson Emergency Management Agency paramedics also went to the nursing home. Mt. Juliet firefighters said the cause of the fire remained under investigation.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Elkhart, IN – Sprinkler system kept fire from spreading at chemical distribution center

Officials with the Elkhart Fire Department said that no cause was determined during their investigation into an early morning fire at EMCO Chemical Distribution Center on Friday.

Firefighters responded to a fire alarm at EMCO Chemical Distribution Center, located on the 3500 block of Cooper Drive in Elkhart around 1:55 a.m. on Friday.

Upon arrival, firefighters did not find an alarm sounding from the exterior, but noticed light smoke coming from the top of a door and water running from underneath the door.

A full response call was put out by the firefighters due to the weather conditions.

Firefighters forced a door open and found the inside of the building filled with heavy smoke.

A semi-truck was also involved, with a fire in the engine compartment.

A sprinkler system was keeping the fire from spreading throughout the rest of the building.

The fire was deemed under control around 2:25 a.m.

According to fire department documents, the cause of the fire remains undetermined due to fire damage to the vehicle.

No one was inside of the building at the time of fire and no injuries were reported.

An ambulance was on the scene to keep firefighters warm while they worked to put the fire out.

Department Store, Retail

Hazleton, PA – Department store fire kept in check by sprinkler system until fire crews arrived

Firefighters brazed sub-zero temperatures extinguishing a fire in a storage room inside Boscov’s Department Store in the Laurel Mall near Hazleton on Thursday morning.

Crews responded to the store at the Laurel Mall in Hazle Township at 4:23 a.m., circled the building and saw smoke coming from one corner on the Regal Cinema side of the building, township fire Chief Scott Kostician said. Firefighters tried accessing the Knox Box to gain entry into the building, but the box was frozen due to the extreme cold, he said.

Firefighters then forced the doors to get inside and found a fire in a storage room, Kostician said. The sprinkler system kept the fire under control until crews could bring in a hose to extinguish it, he said.

The storage room sustained significant fire damage and that corner of the building on both upper and lower levels sustained water damage. Firefighters used more than 20 fans to remove smoke from both levels of the building, Kostician said.

The store called in a cleanup crew to deal with the damage, he said.

Kostician didn’t think the store could open right now, as the sprinkler system was shut down and the electrical system needs to evaluated, he said. When called, an operator said the store would be opening at noon. A manager was not available for comment.

The cause of the fire is under investigation and a state police fire marshal was called, Kostician said.

Firefighters dealt with extreme cold during the response. Temperatures were at minus-10 and firefighters sheltered inside the store once the smoke cleared, Kostician said. The mall was also available as a shelter from the cold, he said.

Firefighters used a 5-inch hose to supply water from the hydrant. Hazle Township lost three sections of hose due to the extreme cold and needed heavy equipment to pry up the hose, which froze to the ground and cracked in half when firefighters tried to roll it up, Kostician said.

“It was brutal. I’ve never experienced this,” he said.

Assisting Hazle Township were firefighters from Freeland, Valley Regional, Sugarloaf, Hazleton, McAdoo and Dorrance Township, White Haven and Weatherly were also called into Freeland on standby for extra manpower if a response was necessary in the extreme cold, borough Fire Chief Joe Stepansky said.

Restaurant

Reading, PA – Sprinkler system helps keep restaurant fire from spreading to neighboring businesses

Firefighters responded to an early Thursday morning fire at a Chinese restaurant in north Reading. Crews were dispatched shortly before midnight to the 800 block of Oley Street for the report of a structure fire. Reading Fire Deputy Chief Ronald Banks said a small fire was found in the kitchen of the Happy Family Chinese buffet on the first floor of the shopping complex at 810 Oley St. Banks said firefighters quickly extinguished the fire, and the sprinkler system in the kitchen was activated. He said the extent of damage was still being determined. Firefighters ventilated smoke from the front of the restaurant as crews checked for any other damage to businesses in the complex, including a barber shop, a Mexican restaurant, a nail salon and a daycare. The fire marshal was sent to the scene to conduct an investigation. Firefighters finished up operations shortly after 1 a.m.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

St. Thomas, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system helps control nursing home fire

Clean-up efforts continued Monday at a St. Thomas retirement home after a fire last Saturday night. A few dozen residents remain displaced by the fire, but officials are saying things could have been much worse if it wasn’t for the safety precautions in place. A recent fire safety drill at Caressant Care may have prevented mass casualties over the weekend.

Bill Todd, St. Thomas fire prevention officer, says, “In November we did a timed drill in that wing, with staff…Here we are less than two months later doing the real thing…So training helps.” When first responders arrived four minutes after a 911 call, staff were already transporting patients from the nursing home wing, to the retirement side.

Clive Hubbard, an investigator with the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office, says “The staff at this facility did a great job of following their fire safety plan and getting [patients] from the fire zone to a safety zone.” Not only were staff prepared, but the building was as well. After a massive fire in Orillia, Ont. in 2009 new legislation required nursing homes to have sprinkler systems in place by 2025. Caressant Care did a proactive retrofit five years ago. Todd says, “This fire would have been a whole lot worse if it wasn’t for sprinklers…It doesn’t put out a fire but delays, in this case it did exactly what it was supposed to do.”

And first responders kicked into high gear as well. At the height of the fire there were 36 firefighters and more than ten EMS vehicles on Bonnie Place, with others alerted

Other Business

Las Vegas, NV – Attic fire in commercial building contained by sprinkler system; Firefighters extinguish blaze

Fire sprinklers prevented a blaze in the attic of a downtown commercial building from spreading before firefighters could extinguish it, Las Vegas Fire & Rescue officials said. The cause of the fire is under investigation, officials said. The fire was initially reported Thursday at 4:10 a.m. burning along some railroad tracks and extending to the rear of a large commercial building in the 800 block of Bonanza Road, officials said. A set of wooden stairs was on fire, but it appeared the fire was outside the building, officials said. About 20 minutes later, a fire alarm was received from the building location, indicating the fire might have gotten inside, officials said. Firefighters forced their way into the building and found it full of smoke, officials said.

Fire was discovered in the attic, but it was being held in check by the sprinkler system and was quickly extinguished, officials said. Investigators believe the fire started around the wooden stairs at the rear of the building, officials said. They also received information that shortly before the fire was reported, a homeless woman was picked up nearby by an ambulance and taken to a hospital with burns, officials said. Investigators a looking into whether she has a connection with the fire, officials said.