Tag Archives: Night (9pm-5am)

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

James City, NC – Late night fire at assisted living facility contained by sprinkler system; Fire started in laundry room

Fire fighters responded to <a fire> at Croatan Village, an assisted living facility in James City.  Crews were called there at 11:30 p.m.  The fire started in the laundry room, but the sprinkler system contained fire. Everyone was evacuated, and no one was injured. A canopy was set up for residents until they could return to their rooms.

Apartment Building, Residential

Charlottesville, VA – Overnight cooking fire at apartment building controlled with help from sprinkler system

An overnight fire forced some Albemarle residents out of their home. It happened shortly after 11 p.m. Thursday in a second floor apartment at 1648 Rio Hill Drive. Albemarle County Fire and Rescue believes it was triggered by cooking …. which activated a sprinkler system. Investigators say the damage to the property and contents totals $4000. There were no injuries, but the fire displaced two families.

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Eugene, OR – Fire in silo at lumber mill is put out by automatic sprinkler system

A sprinkler system put out a fire that started at BJB Milling and Lumber Wednesday night.  Crews were dispatched just before midnight to the mill near Seneca Road and Roosevelt Boulevard in Eugene.  The fire started in a silo on the mill’s property, and fire officials said the sprinkler system prevented what could have been a huge blaze. The cause remains undetermined.  Just two months ago, a fire devoured the 190,000-square-foot Whitsell mill in Saginaw in just half an hour. That blaze caused $10 million in damage.  The Whitsell mill’s sprinkler system was ruled to be inadequate.

Apartment Building, Residential

Chattanooga, TN – No one hurt in early morning apartment fire suppressed by sprinkler system

An early morning fire last left a family of five displaced.  Chattanooga firefighters were called to the Stoneridge Apartments about an automatic fire alarm going off around 3:00 am Tuesday morning.  Firefighters were told by some residents that there was a small fire in a vacant apartment on the second floor.  The buildings sprinkler system had been activated. Firefighters only had to stomp out the remaining fire.  The main damage caused by the fire was damage from water that leaked into the apartment below.  Red Cross volunteers are helping the family because the power to their apartment had to be turned off.  The cause of the fire is being investigated. No one was hurt.

Other - Retail, Retail

Mountain View, CA – Overnight fire at farmers market “mostly extinguished” by automatic sprinkler system

Sprouts Farmers Market on San Antonio Road had to shut down temporarily after a small fire ignited in one of the market’s refrigerators early Friday morning, July 6.  A passerby called 911 just before 4 a.m. to report that smoke was billowing out of the Sprouts building. Firefighters arrived shortly afterward to find heavy smoke inside the market, but the fire had already been mostly extinguished by the market’s sprinkler system. Fire officials say the building was unoccupied when they arrived, and they believe there were no injuries as a result of the fire.  The exact cause of the fire is still being investigated, and fire officials could not immediately give an estimate on the the cost of the damage.  Following the fire, Sprouts was required to close temporarily in order for Santa Clara County health inspectors to check on the extent of the smoke damage.  No estimate was given for when Sprouts will reopen.

Government Office

Moulton, AL – Fire in office cubicle at county courthouse is extinguished by sprinkler system

An overnight fire has caused damage in a north Alabama courthouse, and leaders are trying to figure out what to do next.  Local media reports that Moulton firefighters located the fire in a cubicle on the second floor after receiving an alarm.  Firefighters say it was an electrical fire that was put out by the sprinkler system.

Lawrence County officials announced on social media that the county courthouse in Moulton sustained fire, water and smoke damage from a blaze late Monday.  The building is closed indefinitely, and commissioners are meeting Tuesday to discuss the next step.

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.

Government/Military, Prison / Jail

Terre Haute, IN – Arson fire at correctional facility contained by sprinkler system

The surveillance pictures clearly show a man walking around the offices but he took steps to hide his face and disguise his identity. 

Wearing dark clothing, gloves, and a ski mask, the suspect broke into the Community Corrections Center and then wandered the halls and offices spreading an accelerant with a spray bottle.

“The fire itself placed a lot of people in danger. There was approximately 56 offenders, 54 in the building at the time. I also had 3 or 4 staff here.” said Bill Watson, Executive Director of Community Corrections. 

Smoke alarms alerted everyone to get out, which they did safely, and the building’s sprinkler system poured water on the blaze. Firefighters arrived to finish the job.

Vigo County law enforcement has a message for those who commit these types of crimes:

“People out there that do bad things need to know that they’re not going to get away with it. We’re going to keep looking for you and trying to find you to bring you to justice. This is another example of a law enforcement agency being targeted.” says Norm Loudermilk, Fire Investigator.

Damage was mostly caused by smoke and water. Officials were able to get cleaning crews inside to immediately start putting things back in order.

“A lot of people came together this morning to resolve a bad situation that could have been a lot harder”, Bill Watson.

Even though the suspect covered his face, investigators hope someone will recognize his build, walk, or some other characteristic.

 Anyone with information is asked to call the Vigo County Sheriff’s Department.

Government Office, Government/Military

Terre Haute, IN – Arson fire at corrections facility contained by automatic sprinkler system

A man used a portable weed sprayer full of flammable liquid as he set fire inside multiple offices of the state parole office of Vigo County Community Correction early last Wednesday. Arson investigator Norm Loudermilk of the Terre Haute Fire Department said surveillance video shows the man – dressed in black and wearing a face mask – use a pry bar to open a locked public access door of the building and carry the container into the building. Minutes later, fire alarms sounded.

Multiple offices were entered and sprayed with the accelerant, then set ablaze, Loudermilk said.  The building sprinkler system suppressed the fire, but the building sustained smoke and water damage.  Loudermilk described the suspect as a white male about 5-feet, 10-inches tall and weighing about 230 pounds. He is seen on video walking up to the building from the south, and exiting about a half-hour later.

“It was obvious that the fires were set in each of the offices. Not all of the offices were burned, but each office had been gone through and then several offices were set on fire,” Loudermilk said of the state parole office, where firefighters found heavy smoke when they arrived.  Loudermilk said no one saw the suspect enter or exit the building, though one staff member was on break outside the building at the time the suspect left.  The alarm sounded about 3:43 a.m.

About 60 people were inside the building, which houses the work release center for community corrections.

Those people were evacuated safely with no injuries, and held outside the building. The fact that people were inside the building asleep in dormitories at the time the fire was set makes the arson even more serious, Loudermilk said.

Tips about the suspect can be submitted to the Terre Haute Police Department at 812-238-1661 or through Crime Stoppers at 812-238-STOP.

Firefighters entered the building to find the fire supression system had worked.

Bill Watson, executive director of community corrections, said the door entered by the suspect was not alarmed because it is a public access door used daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., when it is locked by staff.

Video shows the staff locking and checking the door to make sure it was secure, Watson said.

Water and smoke damage occurred throughout the building, he said. Ceiling tiles were water-soaked and must be removed.

Teams from ServePro were cleaning up the dormitory area and control room of work release Wednesday morning. Watson said he expected to have residents moved back into two dormitories today.

About 54 to 56 residents and 4 staff were in the buildling when the fire alarm sounded, Watson said. All exited the building without injury.

“We had protocols in place and those were followed,” Watson said. “They shut down our systems so that damage was minimized, so we should be able to get the security system back online.”

The second floor of the building houses offices for the Title IV-D court, county probation, state parole and Choices Consulting Center, which offers drug and alcohol counseling services.

Community corrections, which includes work release and electronic monitoring, are housed on the first floor of the building.

Forensic teams from THPD were at the scene processing evidence, including collecting fingerprints and liquid believed to be accelerant.

Restaurant

Clifton, NJ – Sprinkler system hold early morning restaurant fire in check

A Lexington Avenue restaurant’s sprinkler system kept an early Wednesday morning fire in check until firefighters arrived and extinguished it, officials said.  Firefighters found smoke coming from Ya Hala restaurant on Lexington Avenue upon arrival at 4:39 a.m., said Deputy Chief Frank Prezioso  Firefighters investigated a hissing sound at first believing it to be a gas leak, Prezioso said. The hissing was coming from the sprinkler system, he said.  Sprinklers limited the fire to the kitchen area, Prezioso said.  The fire took a while to extinguish as it had worked its way above the drop ceiling, Prezioso said.  The deputy chief also said fire crews searched the property for possible victims but found none.  The fire was out by 6:30 a.m. Paterson and Passaic, assisted.