Tag Archives: Oregon

Residential, Townhouse / Condominium

Corvallis, OR – Sprinkler system extinguishes car fire in townhouse garage; No injuries reported

An automatic sprinkler system installed in the garage of a Corvallis townhouse worked to quickly knock down a car fire on Sunday evening, the Corvallis Fire Department reported.

Jim Patton of the Fire Department said the fire broke out at about 6:45 p.m. in the engine compartment of a Ford Escape parked in one of the garage units of the townhouse, in the 300 block of 25th Street. The owner of the car had recently parked the vehicle and was upstairs, in the townhouse’s living area.

Patton said the sprinkler system limited damage to the garage, and prevented the car from being consumed, even though the vehicle likely is totaled. 

 

Occupants of the townhouse were evacuated, but no injuries were reported. Residents were able to return to the townhouses after the fire was extinguished. 

The cause of the fire was not immediately known Sunday night. Three engines and a medical unit responded to the scene.

Storage / Warehouse, Warehouse

Medford, OR – Warehouse fire controlled by sprinkler system; Fire kept small minimizing damage

A well maintained sprinkler system helps keeps warehouse fire small in Medford last Thursday.  At 7:53 p.m. Medford Fire-Rescue responded to a an alarm sounding on the 500 block of S. Front Street. When firefighters arrived they found a warehouse with the smell of smoke and the fire sprinklers were on.  Additional crews from Jackson County Fire District #3,#5 and Medford Police were called to assist.

Fire crews were able to locate the small fire and extinguish it quickly. They then moved on to getting the smoke out of the building.  “Early detection by alarm systems and a well maintained sprinkler system kept this fire small, resulting in minor damage,” MFR wrote on their Facebook page.  The Deputy Fire Marshall says it appears that the fire started outside near an old wooden reinforced garage door. The fire then moved into the warehouse and caught a shipping crate material that stored two air conditioner radiators on fire. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. No injuries were reported.

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Beaverton, OR – No injuries as sprinkler system helps tackle restaurant fire

A fire broke out late Saturday night at Oasis Restaurant in Beaverton — damaging it enough that it was forced to close Sunday.

Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue responded to the small fire at the strip mall around 11 p.m. Saturday. Officials said the accidental fire started after a pot of oil was left on the stove at the popular Lebanese restaurant.

Fortunately, the hood fire suppression system as well as the building’s fire sprinkler system kept the fire from growing.

TVF&R officials said there was limited fire damage, but significant smoke and water damage.

Easter Sunday is normally Oasis Restaurant’s busiest day of the year, but they had to cancel all reservations because of the damage left behind.

There were no injuries reported during the incident.

Primary / Secondary School, School / University

Jasper, OR – Small fire at Seventh-day Adventist school extinguished by sprinkler system

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Officials are investigating the cause of a small fire on Wednesday that led to water damage in Laurelwood Academy southeast of Springfield.  Pleasant Hill and Goshen Fire Districts were called to the private secondary school about 5 p.m. Wednesday for a report of smoke coming from the building. The school, affiliated with the Seventh-day Adventist Church, is on Jasper Lowell Road.  Firefighters discovered smoke coming from the third floor and found that the school’s fire sprinklers had extinguished a small fire on that floor, Pleasant Hill-Goshen Fire Chief Andrew Smith said.  The Lane County Sheriff’s Office and Oregon State Police are helping in the investigation to determine the fire’s cause.

Apartment Building, Residential

Bend, OR – Sprinkler system credited with halting apartment fire; No injuries reported

A fire broke out in a southeast Bend apartment Friday morning, but a sprinkler system confined it to one room and doused the blaze before firefighters arrived, officials said.

The fire was reported around 10 a.m. in one unit of a three-story complex at the Seasons at Farmington Reserve apartments on Southeast Aaron Way.

Five engine crews and two medic units arrived to find light smoke coming from the one apartment and that residents of nearby units had evacuated properly, Bend Fire Department Capt. Scott Wyman said.

“We were prepared to pull hoses, but by the time we got here, there was no need to put any of our water on it — the sprinkler had done its job,” Wyman said. 

While the fire was confined to one room in the apartment, with smoke and water damage, Wyman said crews performed overhaul for some water that made into the units lower in the building.

The cause of the fire was under investigation. The American Red Cross was called in to assist the apartment’s resident, Wyman said.

Child Care Facility, Hospital/Care Facility

Cornelius, OR – Sprinkler system extinguishes fire set by resident at youth group home

A youth group home operated by the Albertina Kerr Centers was damaged Monday evening, March 5, after a resident allegedly set a fire in his room.

The Cornelius Fire Department received the alarm at the house near the intersection of North 10th Avenue and Holladay Street at 6:01 p.m. Monday, according to spokesman Matt Johnston. He said the fire was extinguished quickly, and there were no injuries.

“The fire was actually put out by fire sprinklers,” said Johnston, adding, “It pretty much just burned a curtain. That was all that was burned. The sprinklers put it out and stopped it.”

Jeff Carr, chief executive officer of the Albertina Kerr Centers, said the sprinklers “went off very quickly” and extinguished the fire before first responders even arrived.

Albertina Kerr operates more than a dozen youth group homes and other mental health and treatment facilities across the Portland area.

Hotel / Motel

Astoria, OR – Arson fire at Comfort Suites hotel extinguished with help from sprinkler system

A homeless man has been indicted in connection with a gas leak and fire at the Comfort Suites in Astoria last September. Matthew Jay Burke, 26, allegedly removed a plug from a gas meter near the hotel. Natural gas eventually leaked into and outside of the building on Lief Erikson Drive, causing a spark outside. Flames from the fire extended into the laundry room. The fire was extinguished after a water pipe burst and a ceiling sprinkler activated, causing several inches of water to flood the ground floor. The incident caused the hotel to temporarily close.

Dozens of guests from 75 rooms were evacuated and transferred to other hotels in Astoria and Warrenton. No injuries were reported. Burke was indicted in late January but has been held in a California jail for a separate probation violation. It is unclear whether Burke intended to cause a fire at the hotel or simply damage property. He has been charged with eight counts of recklessly endangering another person and two counts of first-degree criminal mischief.

“Frankly, the motel was full,” Clatsop County Deputy District Attorney Ron Brown said. “The risk to the public could’ve been pretty substantial.” Burke has yet to be transferred to the Clatsop County Jail, and an arraignment has not been scheduled.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Portland, OR – Fire at castings manufacturer suppressed by sprinkler system

A sprinkler system is credited with dousing a commercial fire in Southeast Portland on Sunday morning.  Portland Fire & Rescue crews were called out to the Precision Castparts building on SE Harney near Johnson Creek Boulevard.  Crews say a broken steam pipe leaked water which ended up creating an electrical hazard and sparking a small fire. After the fire was out crews set about fixing the leak.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Lebanon, OR – Machinery and duct-work fire at manufacturer put out with help from sprinkler system

The Lebanon Fire District responded to the report of a structure fire at ENTEK Manufacturing around 9:40 p.m. last Tuesday.   Crews arrived to light smoke showing on arrival and evacuation in progress. There was a report of machinery on fire with extension into the duct work.

Lebanon firefighters stretched hose lines into the structure and extinguished the fire with the assistance of the sprinkler system. Firefighters remained on scene until about 1:30 a.m. evacuating smoke and checking for fire extension. Lebanon was assisted by the Albany, Sweet Home, and Tangent fire departments. There where no injuries reported at the incident. According to their website, ENTEK “sells lead-acid separators, lithium-ion separators, extruders, and engineering services on six continents.“

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Bend, OR – Sprinkler system stops ‘ball of fire’ at downtown restaurant

A cooking oil fire ignited on the stove of a downtown Bend restaurant’s kitchen Monday morning, creating what a fire official called “a ball of fire that roared out from under the range hood” — but also setting off a fire sprinkler head that put out the blaze and prevented far worse damage.

Bend Fire Department crews responded around 10 a.m. to the reported fire at Mother’s Downtown Kitchen on Northwest Minnesota Avenue, next door to The Oxford Hotel, said Battalion Chief Dave Howe.

First-arriving crews reported some smoke coming from the building, but soon reported the fire already was out.

Cooking oil in a pot on the stove was ignited, possibly by a few drops of water, which caused the “ball of fire” that  set off the sprinkler head, Howe said. It also activated the range hood extinguishing system, putting out the oil still burning in the pot.

Losses were estimated at $30,000 in contents, but none to the building itself, both of which were insured.

The sprinkler, designed to open at 165 degrees, “saved the structure from what might have been a devastating loss,” Howe said in a news release.

The fire alarm system also quickly notified Deschutes County 911, as did a couple of customers.