Tag Archives: Oklahoma

Retail

Lawton, OK – Arson fire at Dollar Tree last month put out with help from sprinkler system

A Lawton man is now charged with arson after police say he started a fire in a Lawton store last month.  Police say 20-year-old Thompson Williams is the man who was caught on surveillance video setting a fire inside the Dollar Tree on 2nd street on July 15th.  They say his arson attempt failed because an employee using a fire extinguisher and the store’s sprinkler system put out the flames.  Williams is charged with fourth degree arson, and is set to appear in court in October.

Apartment Building, Residential

Norman, OK – Arson fire apartment complex is put out by sprinkler system

Officers say James Cox, 23, has admitted that last Thursday he broke several windows at a shopping center located off Alameda St., as well as others on the west side of town. Police say these damages surpass $4,000.  One Supercuts employee says Cox was spotted on security footage around 4:00 AM tipping trash cans into store windows. Police say 6 to 8 were damaged in total.

“When I walked in and locked our door, I noticed there was glass all over our floor,” says the Supercuts employee. “At that time I called police and walked up and down the sidewalk, and saw that Ace (Hardware) had been hit, we had been hit and Sally’s (Beauty Supply) had been hit.”

But hours later, around 9:30, surveillance footage caught a different crime scene. This time at the Brookview Apartments.  Someone called 911 after a fire started in one of the units.  The sprinkler system extinguished the fire before it spread.
•Dispatch: Hello
•Caller: The water is coming down? Okay. The fire is out now. We had to turn off the sprinkler system. I don’t know, someone burned the apartment down. Someone, I am not sure.

Firefighters says they later found a pile of laundry on a bed, dowsed in lighter fluid.

That apartment belonged to Cox mother according to investigators.

“They were in route to the scene when the police department called them and said that they had a person of interest that they needed to come talk to,” says Deputy Chief Mike Wilson of the Norman Fire Department.

Cox had been tracked down by officers who were using images captured hours earlier by the cameras at the Alameda shopping center.

“When our investigators showed up, he confessed to the investigators that he was the one who started the fire. Wanted to make sure no one was injured in the fire he started,” says Deputy Chief Wilson.

Cox will be in court next Tuesday.

He faces one count of First-Degree Arson and Four Counts of Malicious Injury to Property Over $1,000.

Apartment Building, Residential

Shawnee, OK – Fifth floor apartment fire put out with help from sprinkler system

An overnight emergency shelter was being set up late Friday night for half of the residents who live at Shawnee Towers at 1130 E. Independence, where a fifth floor fire was reported Friday evening.

What began as a fire alarm and evacuation of residents turned into more for those living on the north end, where water from the sprinkler system impacted every unit on that end of the complex.

One resident, who was outside waiting with her dog, Charlie, said she quickly evacuated and didn’t see any smoke until she was outside.

“When the alarm went off, I grabbed my phone, my wallet and my dog,” she said.

Whiles crews had the fire out quickly in that fifth floor unit, it was the water from the sprinkler system that prompted the decision to evacuate residents overnight.

Deputy Shawnee Fire Chief Andy Starkey said they were going to have to evacuate the entire north end “due to electrical hazards because of the water.”

Starkey, who said they were calling in the Red Cross to assist in getting that shelter set up for residents late Friday night, said they expected the overnight evacuation to involve 40 to 50 residents.

Residents on the south end were not impacted by the fire.

Cause of the fire was still undetermined late Friday night, he added.

The complex is part of the Shawnee Housing Authority.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential, Residential High Rise

Oklahoma City, OK – No injuries after fire at high rise retirement home is put out by sprinkler system

A northeast side retirement home has been partially evacuated due to a high-rise fire.  The Oklahoma City Fire Department responded around 12:18 p.m. on Sunday at the Senior Living Center in the 1200 block of N. Kate Avenue.  Upon arrival, heavy smoke was reported.  Officials said the fire ended up being a mattress in a room on the fifth floor. Some residents evacuated, and others sheltered in place.  The fire was put out, while a sprinkler system continued flowing and crews worked to control the water.  Firefighters said no injuries have been reported.  Less than an hour later, residents were allowed back in their rooms except for those who live on the fifth floor.  Automatic sprinkler systems save lives,” said Battalion Chief Benny Fulkerson. “Water damage is much preferred over larger fires and fatalities from smoke.”  No other details have been released at this time.

Other Business

Tulsa, OK – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in putting out fire at linen company

Tulsa firefighters had to battle heavy smoke to put out a rubber floor mat fire at a Tulsa business Monday evening.  The fire happened just before 8:30 p.m. at Superior Linen Company in the 500 block of South Rockford.  Firefighters say they got the call after someone noticed heavy smoke pouring from the building. They arrived to find a roll of rubber floor maps on fire. Firefighters say it wasn’t the fire, but that smoke inside the business that caused them problems.

“The amount of smoke from those floor mats really made it tough for us to operate inside that building,” said Tulsa Fire Captain Jason Gilkison.  He said they had to use thermal imaging cameras once inside to help guide them through the smoke.  Gilkison says with the help of the building’s sprinkler system, they were able to put out the fire.  The business was closed at the time and no injuries were reported.

Other Business, Recycling / Waste Facility

Duncan, OK – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in controlling potentially dangerous blaze at waste facility

A small fire broke out at approximately 7 p.m. Wednesday at Waste Connections, apparently caused by a chemical reaction in a pile of trash workers had recently dumped at the site. Duncan Fire Chief Dayton Burnside said Oakridge Volunteer Fire Department (OVFD) was first on the scene and reacted quickly to extinguish the flaming trash heap. “They were first on scene, we just got a call to help them with a fire in Waste Connections’ main building,” Burnside said. “[The fire] was in the trash piles — it was all compacted up, the structure was saved but all [of] the contents of the pile was gone, it was put out in about 45 minutes.”

According to Jeff Bruehl, an officer for OVFD, firefighters weren’t alerted to the blaze in the traditional way with a call — in fact, they saw the flames themselves. “— We actually never got the call, we called them, we saw smoke coming from the building because we were next door working on a fire truck,” said Bruehl. “Then, somewhere in between that time and when we got there, two or three other people had called. When we got there, [the fire] was just in the transfer station — they had dumped, looked like a pile of mattresses and bedding and — it was burning in that section. — The sprinkler system activated about the same time we got there and was helping us put it out.”

Bruehl said though the exact cause of the blaze hasn’t been determined, it’s likely that the fire was caused by a chemical reaction or some sort of discarded material that shouldn’t have been thrown in a dumpster to begin with.

“Most likely, it was discarded either when they loaded it or unloaded it, [it could be] friction or a chemical reaction, some kind of chemicals in it. I mean, it’s trash, so it’s kind of hard to pinpoint it. We looked at all of the different items in the trash, but we couldn’t find any particular items. It could have been anything from a cigarette discarded to a chemical reaction from something.”

Minimal damage was caused by the fire, according to Bruehl, and no equipment was harmed, but Bruehl did have some tips for the community about what should and shouldn’t be thrown into a trash receptacle. Advice he hopes can help prevent fires like these from happening in the future.

“— Be careful what you throw away, no chemicals — are supposed to be put in the trash dumpsters,” he said. “—It can cause chemical reactions. Paint thinner, oil, bleach even. — A lot of people don’t know it, but [a] bleach and motor oil combination can, it takes an hour or two, it gets hotter and hotter and then bursts into flames if they get mixed together. — An empty bleach bottle still has some residue in it and the right combinations, temperature and the wind — can set off a chemical reaction.”

Residential, Sorority / Fraternity

Stillwater, OK – Early morning fraternity house fire doused by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

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The Stillwater Fire Department says around 40 Oklahoma State University students have been displaced after a fire early Thursday.Firefighters responded around 3:50 a.m. to a fire alarm at the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity house near 3rd and Lincoln. It was reported that smoke was coming from a room on the third floor and students were evacuating.

The fire department says the fire had been in a closet and was extinguished by the sprinkler system. No injuries were reported in the fire.  The sprinklers caused significant damaged to the west side of the building, according to the fire department. University officials and the Red Cross are providing assistance to the displaced students.  The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Apartment Building, Residential

Oklahoma City, OK – Firefighters say sprinkler system helped halt apartment fire; woman and child safely evacuated

Firefighters say a sprinkler system at an apartment complex helped put out a potentially dangerous fire.

Fire crews were called to the scene around 3 a.m. near I-240 and Penn.

Officials say a woman called saying her door was on fire and that her and her daughter were trapped inside.

OKCFD crews say the sprinkler system put out that fire and crews were able to rescue the woman and the child.

Multiple apartments in the complex were evacuated. There were no injuries to report.

Right now, the fire is considered suspicious and arson investigators were on-scene.

Apartment Building, Residential

Norman, OK – Sprinkler system helps put out fire that started in apartment building’s utility closet

The Norman Fire Department reported that there were no injuries as a result of a fire today at an apartment complex.

Norman Fire responded at about 2:45 p.m. to a report of a blaze at The Edge at Norman apartments, 2200 block of Classen Boulevard. When firefighters arrived on scene, they found visible flames and heavy smoke coming from an apartment within the complex. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire.

Norman Public Information Officer Sarah Jensen said the initial investigation showed that the fire started in the apartment’s utility closet where the hot water heater and heating and air conditioning units were housed.

Due to the building’s fire sprinkler being activated, two units within the building sustained water damage.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Apartment Building, Residential

Miami, OK – Sprinkler system assists firefighters in controlling apartment fire; No injuries

An early Sunday morning fire at the Miami Towers building managed by the Miami Housing Authority at 41 North Main in Miami could have been devastating. However, thanks to quick thinking and fast response, what could have been tragic ended with no injuries and only minor smoke and water damages.  Many residents were evacuated from the 75 unit, seven-story building as a precaution. The apartments in the building are leased to residents meeting HUD income limits with age requirements of 62 years of age and or with a disability.

“It was quickly averted,” Miami Housing Authority Executive Director Mark McDowell said. “It started in a mattress and after they found it the fire department removed it.” Some water damages did occur from efforts to douse the flames, but McDowell said the building maintenance crew would be able to make repairs.

“We have good maintenance men who will be able to repair the building. Water damage was very minimal and we’re still working on that. We had some dry wall damage and of course some ceiling damage below,” he said. “There were no injuries to speak of, really. Some residents may have coughed because of the smoke, but it was pretty much uneventful. It could have been a bad thing. We have all of our evacuation routes posted more than once on each floor. We go through evacuation routes at move in.”

Firefighters received a dispatch call to the Miami Towers at 7:02 a.m. regarding a fire on the seventh floor and arrived on scene at 7:05 a.m. Two units and two engines arrived and the firemen took the stairs and found smoke in the hallway of the sixth floor. According to the Miami Fire Department’s incident report, the fire started on the sixth floor in apartment 601 by an occupant who fell asleep while smoking, starting the fire.

“A sprinkler system was activated and we found a mattress on fire,” Miami Fire Captain James G. Turner wrote in the report.

Miami firefighters removed the mattress and took it downstairs, and opened several windows to ventilate the building. Firefighters placed a sprinkler wedge in the sprinkler discharge to stop the water flow to avoid and mitigate further damages.

“They put a wooden wedge to stop the water flow. Those things do put out a lot of water,” Miami Fire Chief Robert Wright said. “They were able to get there quick and able to stop it quick. It was a quick response from our guys at the station, and with the building being sprinkled, they did a great job. Also, Larry, the maintenance man up there, pulled the pull station to set off the alarm which rings straight to a monitoring company to 911 dispatch”

Patrons of Alene’s Restaurant just sitting down to eat also had to forego breakfast while the firefighters worked.

The building currently allows smoking inside residents’ apartments but new policies at state, federal and local levels may soon change to ban smoking to outside or designated areas for safety and health concerns.

“The resident wasn’t breaking any rules other than she probably shouldn’t have been smoking in bed,” McDowell said. “That’s just not something you should be doing.”

McDowell received several calls from the monitoring service notifying him of the fire alarm. The alarm system also sounded throughout the building and firefighters went apartment to apartment to offer assistance with evacuation, and residents warned each other, according to McDowell.

“Some slept through it,” he said. “There’s a loud alarm that goes off, so I’m hoping that maybe that will make a few of them aware if they need an additional type of alarm. I can’t go ask under ADA regulation. Some of the residents have buddies and will check on each other and go door to door.” Firefighters train specifically for such events, according to Wright.

“We lay out hose and practice in training. For a multi-story residential building with assisted living, those are one of the hardest responses to determine where it’s at and what it is, and they did a great job,” Wright said. “And it’s good that those types of buildings have to have sprinkler systems because that catches it in the incipient phase and it helps everybody.”

McDowell is very appreciative of the Miami firefighters and very grateful no one was injured.

“These firefighters are top notch,” he said. “The residents were out of their apartment for just as short as time as possible. Overall it was handled very well and I’m just glad no one was seriously hurt because it could have been disastrous.”