Tag Archives: South Carolina

Apartment Building, Residential

Port Royal, SC – Sprinkler system assist firefighters in controlling apartment fire; Device being charged caught fire

Residents of 9 apartments were displaced Tuesday night after an electronic device caught fire on a resident’s couch at the Parc at Broad River complex in Port Royal, according to fire officials.  Fire Chief Reece Bertholf, of the Beaufort-Port Royal Fire Department, said the device, which was being charged when it caught fire, was burned up in the blaze.

He would not specify what type of device it was but said insurance investigators would be making that determination.  The building’s sprinkler system was activated and residents were evacuating when firefighters arrived just after 6:30 p.m., according to a news release from the fire department.  Smoke was coming from the third-floor apartment where the couch was burning, the news release said.

It said firefighters were able to put out the fire “within minutes” of arriving. The apartment where the fire started sustained fire, water and smoke damage, Bertholf said. Neighboring apartments sustained various levels of water damage.

Attempts to reach apartment managers by phone on Wednesday were unsuccessful.  Bertholf said there are 36 apartments in the building.  No one was injured in the fire, the news release said. Burton and Parris Island firefighters also responded to the scene. Burton Fire District posted a photo on Facebook of a firefighter holding a cat that was rescued from the building.

 

College/University (on campus), School / University

Columbia, SC – Electrical fire at Coliseum extinguished by sprinkler system

The University of South Carolina’s Carolina Coliseum was damaged in a fire Thursday morning.

Firefighters responded to an alarm at around 10:15 a.m. after a construction worker cut through a live wire he believed was turned off, causing electricity to arc and start a small fire, said Columbia Fire Chief Aubrey Jenkins.

Nobody, including the worker who cut through the live wire, was injured, and by the time firefighters responded, the building’s sprinkler system had extinguished the fire, Jenkins said.

Jenkins called the fire “very minimal.” 

A commercial-size dryer at the 12,000-seat arena — which predominantly serves as a practice facility for the university’s basketball teams and houses the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management — was damaged, Jenkins said.

Though the building had smoke in it when firefighters arrived, the smoke did not cause damage to the building. It did, however, receive minor water damage from the sprinklers being activated.

Before Colonial Life Arena opened in 2002, basketball games and big concerts had been held at Carolina Coliseum since 1968. USC committed to renovating the building in 2017.

Other - Manufacturing, Recycling / Waste Facility

Fountain Inn, SC – Sprinkler systems keep fire outside plastics business from spreading into structures

Dispatchers said the fire was reported at Ameri-Pak at 477 S. Woods Drive before noon last Tuesday.   The fire burned an area between buildings, but the side of several buildings was singed.

Fire Chief Ronnie Myers said the fire burned mostly outside where the business takes in scrap plastics.  The fire was out within a few hours, but crews were still monitoring hot spots late Tuesday afternoon.  Officials said the sprinkler system went off in both buildings, which helped to contain most of the fire outside.  Several fire departments including Oconee, Pickens, Anderson, Greenville, Spartanburg and Laurens assisted, Myers said.

“Once you get plastic burning, it’s very hot. It gets so hot, you can’t put it out with just water. You have to put foam on it to smother the fire. It was a very intense fire,” Fire Chief Ronnie Myers said.  Ameri-Pak is a packaging company. Its website says that the company services manufacturers including 3M, Sealed Air, Tape Logic, Rubbermaid and Ivex.

Hotel / Motel

Myrtle Beach, SC – Fire in 9th floor maintenance office of high-rise hotel contained with help from sprinkler system

Myrtle Beach Fire Department crews responded to a 2-alarm fire at a hotel in downtown Myrtle Beach shortly before 2 p.m. on Friday. MBFD Deputy Chief Tom Gwyer believes the fire started in a maintenance office on the 9th floor of the Monterey Bay Suites on Ocean Boulevard. The sprinkler system went off and the 9th and 10th floors were evacuated. Crews were able to get the fire under control.  Gwyer also says there were no injuries but initial crews who responded to the fire are recovering from the heat and climbing stairs in their gear. An Horry County ambulance is on scene in case crews need medical attention.

Apartment Building, Residential

Greenville, SC – Apartment kitchen fire put out by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Three families are out of their homes following a kitchen fire at an apartment complex. The Red Cross says it’s helping six adults and seven children. It happened Wednesday night at Berea Heights Apartments on Lions Club Road. Berea Fire Department said there was a kitchen fire in an apartment. The sprinkler system put out the fire. However, water seeped into apartments on lower levels. No one was reportedly hurt in the fire. Firefighters say all three families were displaced due to water damage. The Red Cross is providing financial help with lodging, food and other necessities.

Apartment Building, Residential

Beaufort, SC – Fire department credits sprinkler system in controlling apartment kitchen fire

Burton Fire District and Beaufort/Port Royal Fire Department responded to a fire at Ashton Pointe Apartments in Port Royal Friday evening, according to a Burton Fire District release. The fire broke out at around 6:30 p.m. Friday in an apartment kitchen, the release said. Firefighters arriving on the scene found smoke emanating from a second floor apartment in the complex, which is located on Robert Smalls Parkway.

“I was met outside the affected apartment by a female resident and with her child” said Lt. Josh Waskow of the Beaufort/Port Eoyal Fire Department in a Department release, which also said he was the first fire officer on the scene. “She told me her stove top, cabinets and kitchen were on fire and when we entered her apartment we found the fire completely contained and almost fully extinguished through the activation of two residential sprinkler heads.”

Firefighters were able to finish extinguishing the fire on their arrival, the Burton release said, limiting fire damage to the stove and cabinets.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Myrtle Beach, SC – Arson fire at hotel contained to room of origin by sprinkler system

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The Horry County Police Department arrested and charged a man in connection to a fire that displaced dozens of hotel guests in Horry County. According to J. Reuben Long Detention Center booking records, Tracy William Nelson, 45, of Myrtle Beach, was charged with second degree arson. Horry County Fire Rescue responded to the fire Tuesday evening at City Studios Hotel, located at 401 Hospitality Lane in Myrtle Beach. Responding crews say the fire was confined to a room on the second floor. A sprinkler system activation helped keep from spreading.

An official report from the Horry County Police Department says officers were “informed that it appeared a fire was started intentionally, due to a stove-top burner being left on with a box on top of it.” According to the report, officers were told no one was staying on the second floor because of ongoing renovations, with the exception of people hired to help with the project. Guests at City Studios Hotel were relocated to different hotels in the area, according to Horry County police. No injuries were reported. Nelson remains in jail Wednesday night on a $10,000 bond.

Apartment Building, Residential

Burton, SC – Apartment kitchen fire caused by unattended cooking extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Just after 6 p.m. Thursday, Burton and MCAS firefighters responded to an alarm activation at Magnolia Park Apartments on Laurel Bay Road. When they got there, they found the residents evacuating and smoke was coming from a second-floor apartment. Upon investigation, crews learned the resident fell asleep while cooking. The unattended food ignited, and the growing flames spread to the cabinets activating the fire alarm as well as a single fire sprinkler head which extingui9shed the fire before the first firetruck arrived. That sprinkler system saved Christmas for 16 families in the apartment complex. No injuries were reported.

Fire crews say cooking is the leading cause of fires, and with the holidays approaching, Burton Fire officials are urging citizens to be extra careful when at the stove, and to place fire extinguishers where they can be seen, quickly accessed, and used.

Apartment Building, Residential

Myrtle Beach, SC – Sprinkler system keeps apartment fire from spreading; Fire contained to room of origin

Myrtle Beach Fire Department crews responded to 1075 Mr. Joe White Avenue, the Alliance Inn, Friday morning for the report of an apartment fire, according to Lt. Jon Evans with MBFD.  Evans stated that all occupants were out of the building when crews arrived, and that most of the fire was extinguished by the sprinkler system in the room the fire started in.  The fire did not extend to any further rooms.  The fire is still under investigation at this time, check back with WMBF News for more information.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Myrtle Beach, SC – Kitchen fire at Best Western hotel extinguished by sprinkler system

North Myrtle Beach Fire Rescue crews responded to an alarm activation that turned into a structure fire call at the Best Western.  According to a Facebook post from North Myrtle Beach Fire Rescue, crews were called around 5 p.m., Sunday evening to the Best Western on 1600 block of South Ocean Blvd. When crews arrived, they proceeded to the 6th floor to check the area that was activated and were met by occupants saying they could smell smoke. The incident was upgraded to a structure fire and response crews connected into the standpipe to prepare for fire attack in one of the rooms on the 6th floor. There was a small kitchen fire that was extinguished by the activated sprinkler.