Tag Archives: Pennsylvania

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Bristol, PA – Fire from industrial machine held in check by fire sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Fire crews were at an industrial site in Bristol Township’s Croydon section for a fire Wednesday morning.

Crews from numerous area fire companies were dispatched to Zober Industries on Coventry Avenue at 11:08 a.m. for the fire.

The blaze was in an industrial machine at Zober Industries that separated antifreeze and oil. The blaze was held in check by the building’s sprinkler system, Croydon Fire Company Chief Tom Tryon and Bristol Township Fire Marshal Kevin Dippolito said.

Tryon explained that some of the antifreeze and oil was pushed by water from the fire suppression system into nearby storm drains. The chief said environmental protection officials and the U.S. Coast Guard were alerted of the spill.

No injuries were reported, Dippolito said.

Zober Industries has been a stable in Croydon since the mid-1970s and serves as a vendor that offers custom manufacturing.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Philadelphia, PA – Hospital fire extinguished by fire sprinklers after man barricaded himself in room and set fire to bed sheets; No injuries reported

The emergency room at a Kensington hospital was closed Saturday after a man set a fire inside one of the rooms, police said.

A man at Temple University Hospital’s Episcopal Campus barricaded himself in a room in the emergency department and set fire to bed sheets, but no one was injured.

Police said hospital security searched the 30- to 40-year-old man at about 2:40 p.m. Saturday and placed him in a room. The man was there to receive drug treatment. Police said he barricaded himself inside and turned on oxygen tanks, then lit the bed sheets on fire.

Police said a maintenance man broke a window and the man climbed out and fought with security, but police arrived and arrested him. The emergency room was evacuated with no injuries. The blaze was extinguished and the fire marshal declared it an arson.

A spokeswoman for Temple Health said the building’s sprinkler system extinguished the fire. Patients in the ER were transported to Temple University Hospital’s Main Campus, she added. The hospital will continue sending ER patients there until the Episcopal ER can reopen.

Police said the emergency room will remain closed until repairs are completed.

Retail, Shopping Mall

Lancaster, PA – Sprinkler system control fire at mall food kiosk

A fire caused damage at Park City Center in Lancaster on Friday morning.

The fire started in a food warmer at a kiosk in the center of the mall around 6:30 a.m., firefighters said.

The fire activated the sprinkler system. According to firefighters, there were two to three inches of water in the center of the mall and smoke throughout every wing.

There was moderate to heavy smoke in the center court.

Fans were brought in to clear out the remaining smoke. Some stores are now open.

Because there are restaurants in the mall, the health department was brought in to inspect them.

The fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Erie, PA – Fire sprinklers extinguish fire after man sets bed on fire at hotel

A Corry man was charged with setting fire to a Summit Township motel bed and damaging the motel room’s sprinkler system.

Patrick Hanlin Jr., 30, was staying at the Microtel Inn, 8100 Peach St., on Tuesday when he set fire to his bed, state police said in a news release. Hanlin then left the room without notifying authorities about the fire.

The room’s fire suppression system extinguished the fire but state police discovered that one sprinkler head had been broken before it was activated. The fire caused about $15,000 in damage, state police said.

Troopers also found drug paraphernalia in the room.

Hanlin was arrested in the motel lobby and later charged with causing or risking a catastrophe, criminal mischief, arson, reckless endangerment and possession of a controlled substance–paraphernalia.

Hanlin was taken to the Erie County Prison on $50,000 monetary bail.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

West Goshen, PA – Fire sprinklers contain hallway fire at hotel; No injuries reported

A fire in a hallway forced the evacuation of the Microtel on the 500 block of Willowbrook Lane Thursday evening.  

West Chester firefighters were alerted just after 8 p.m. and arrived to find the alarms sounding and the building evacuated.

Chester County Fire Marshal Latta White said there were no injuries, however power was out to the building so no residents would be able to return to the building. He said the building has 90 rooms of which more than 70 were occupied, most with multiple guests.

White said the fire was contained by sprinklers, and firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze which was located on a first floor hallway.

The fire alarm went off, and the desk person checked the fire alarm and found smoke on the first floor and called the fire department, White said. 

Multiple guests could be seen leaving the scene with assistance from firefighters.

White said the cause of the fire was under investigation.

Adult Care/Rehab Center, Hospital/Care Facility

Levittown, PA – Fire contained to commercial dryer at substance abuse treatment center thanks to fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

A Saturday night fire damaged a residential substance abuse treatment facility.

Firefighters from the Langhorne-Middletown Fire Company and Newtown Fire Association were called to Pyramid Healthcare, formerly Today Inc., in the 1900 block of North Woodbourne Road by Core Creek Park in Middletown for a report of a basement blaze around 10:15 p.m.

Crews arrived and found the basement fire contained to a single room. They beat back the bulk of the flames within 10 minutes, and the fire was placed fully under control a few minutes later, Langhorne-Middletown Fire Company Chief Frank Farry said.

Smoke spread throughout the building that has dorms, but the fire was contained to the single room in the basement. The room contained a large commercial dryer and had a working sprinkler, Farry said.

No injuries were reported.

The Bucks County Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the blaze due to the fact the facility leases their location from the county.

Storage / Warehouse, Warehouse

Salem Township, PA – Sprinklers help douse fire after debris ignited

A fire damaged part of a business Tuesday morning in Luzerne County.

It happened around 8:30 a.m. inside the Leggett and Platt warehouse on Salem Boulevard near Shickshinny.

Company officials say an electrician was installing a light near the ceiling when something sparked, igniting debris.

The plant was evacuated. Sprinkler systems inside helped douse the flames.

The worker suffered minor burns.

Employees were allowed back into the facility to clean up the smoke and water damage. The company says the fire should not affect the operation of the plant.

According to officials, the company makes padding under carpets.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Williamsport, PA – Fire that started inside machine contained by sprinkler activation

All employees at Lycoming Engines at High and Oliver streets in the city were safely evacuated when a deburring machine caught fire on the first floor about 10 a.m. Monday, city Deputy Chief Dave Dymeck said.

The fire activated a sprinkler that helped contain it, Dymeck said, adding that firefighters donned self-contained breathing apparatuses, entered the mammoth complex with hoses and had the fire out in 30 minutes.

Employees were allowed back in once the building was declared safe, Dymeck.

“This was an accidental fire,” he said, adding that fire damage was confined to the machine.

Second alarm companies from Old Lycoming Township and South Williamsport were called to the scene as a precautionary measure.

Apartment Building, Residential

Scranton, PA – High-rise apartment fire held in check by sprinkler system

Fire crews in Scranton are on the scene of another high-rise fire.

The call came in around 5:45 a.m on Thursday for a fire at the Adams High-Rise Apartments on Adams Avenue.

Officials say the fire started in a storage unit on the second floor.  The sprinkler system did go off.

Two residents were taken to the hospital for breathing in smoke, and a firefighter does have a minor injury.

A fire inspector is looking into the cause.

This is also the second fire at a high-rise in Scranton in less than 24 hours.

Apartment Building, Residential

Warrington, PA – (no media coverage) Fire sprinkler activation at apartment controls fire, saves property

We recently responded to a service call for a sprinkler activation in an apartment building due to a fire. Upon arrival it was discovered a single 1999 Viking Model M residential pendant sprinkler had activated to control the small fire in the dwelling unit. The head was replaced and the system was placed back in service and the residents returned to their apartments. Without the activation of the sprinkler system, in the Type V (wood frame) structure, serious injury to the tenants could have occurred and the building would have sustained significant damage. Ironically the wet fire sprinkler system had just been inspected the week before. Once again a properly installed and maintained water based fire sprinkler system saves lives and property.

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