Tag Archives: Washington

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Port Orchard, WA – Sprinkler head extinguishes fire in retirement community

A fire in a basket filled with oily rags in a downstairs laundry room at Park Vista Retirement Community Sept. 28 was extinguished by South Kitsap Fire and Rescue firefighters.

SKFR dispatched 16 apparatus and support vehicles to the Port Orchard retirement community at 2944 SE Lund Ave. An additional engine responded from Bremerton Fire Department.

As firefighters opened the door to the laundry room, they noticed smoke in the room, Assistant Chief Jeff Faucett said. One sprinkler head had been activated by heat from the fire, he added. Additional crews arriving were able to assist Park Vista’s staff in moving residents to a safe location in the building.

“Once the rags ignited, the fire traveled up a wall and extended to cabinets above the basket,” Faucett said. “The flames generated enough heat to activate the sprinkler head, which extinguished the fire.”

Deputy Fire Marshal Brad Wiggins said the fire could have been much worse. “Given the time of night, the number of residents and the fact that many of them need assistance moving around, things could have been worse,” Wiggins said. “The sprinkler system, the fire alarm system and Park Vista staff did their job and that is the reason for the positive outcome.”

The fire was caused by a chemical reaction from oily rags piled in a basket, Faucett said. The rags had been used to clean ovens and were soaked in grease. He said it is common for fabric material that has been soaked in oil to have a chemical reaction that will heat up to the point of ignition.

Giving oily rags a run-through in a washing machine typically won’t remove the oils, he noted.

Fire department officials said the fire was the second this year that SKFR has responded to where a single sprinkler has saved a commercial structure from fire loss.

Storage / Warehouse, Warehouse

Wenatchee, WA – Sprinkler system helps control foam tray fire at packaging company

A fire in foam apple trays at Dolco Packaging was confined from spreading by an exterior sprinkler system and a quick response by firefighters.   The foam trays were stacked on pallets  in an outdoor storage yard and the burning material put up a significant amount of black smoke when it was first reported to RiverCom about 7:20pm.  The facility is located at 1121 S. Columbia Street in Wenatchee.

The Wenatchee World reports crews from Chelan Fire District #1 and Douglas Fire District #2 arrived and quickly knocked down the fire.   A 2nd alarm was sent out requesting more firefighters but was quickly cancelled when the fire was brought under control according to  Chelan County Battalion Chief Cary Neu.   He reported some smoke damage to the interior of the warehouse but the majority of the damage was outside.  The cause of the fire was not available.

Apartment Building, Residential

East Wenatchee, WA – Sprinkler system limits damage in apartment kitchen fire; No injuries reported

The sprinkler systems that are required by code in East Wenatchee apartment buildings worked perfectly Monday to keep a stove fire from spreading according to fire investigator Brian Brett.  Crews were called just after 11am to the Bello Rio Apartments in the 2-thousand block of Northwest Cascade Avenue.  That’s where Brett said a fire began in one of the apartment units when French fries were left cooking.  Brett said the sprinkler systems are required by code in multi-unit apartment buildings and in this case, prevented the fire from spreading.   Damage was confined to the wall above the stove area.

Apartment Building, Residential

Woodland, WA – Fire chief credits sprinkler system in saving occupant in apartment fire

A Woodland man is alive thanks to a sprinkler head in the kitchen of his apartment, fire officials said.  Firefighters were called to the La Casa De San Juan Diego Apartments, 125 S. Pekin Road, in Woodland at about 9:20 a.m. on Sunday for a fire alarm, Clark County Fire & Rescue division chief Tim Dawdy said.

A man had come home from work, put some grease on the stove to start cooking and fell asleep in the living room when the fire broke out, Dawdy said.  By the time crews arrived, however, the sprinkler had put out the fire, stopping it from spreading further than the kitchen, he said.  Firefighters helped clean up the mess when they got there.  Dawdy said that fires like this one have resulted in injury and even become deadly, but that thanks to this sprinkler head, the man in the residence wasn’t even displaced.

Apartment Building, Residential

Vancouver, WA – Late night apartment fire controlled by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Four families are without homes after a fire broke out inside an apartment complex in Vancouver late last Wednesday night.  The Vancouver Fire Department said firefighters were called to the Aurora Apartments in the 8100 block of Northeast Fourth Plain Boulevard around 11 p.m. Crews said they arrived to see smoke coming from the side of the three-story complex. Firefighters quickly entered the structure and found a sprinkler-controlled fire in a second-floor unit. They were able to knock out the fire within 15 minutes.  All residents made it out of the complex safely and no injuries were reported.  The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Apartment Building, Residential

Mercer Island, WA – Apartment kitchen fire extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries reported

Shortly after noon on July 6, Mercer Island and Bellevue Fire Department units responded to the Mercer Apartments in downtown Mercer Island for a fire that started in one of the unit’s kitchens, and was ultimately extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system.

A fire started on a stove, activating the building’s fire alarm system and initiating the response. The fire extended into the cabinetry above, and produced a large amount of smoke that filled the unit and the adjacent hallway, on the fifth floor of the building. The activated sprinklers caused a heavy water flow into the hallway, adjacent units and through the ceiling of multiple units on the floor below.

Even though the fire was completely extinguished by the automatic sprinklers, a coordinated ventilation and salvage effort was still needed by the multiple fire units that responded. Occupants were displaced for more than two hours while the smoke and water was cleared. Nobody was allowed back into the affected areas of the building until the atmosphere was determined safe through the fire department’s air monitoring equipment. No injuries were reported, and investigations are ongoing.

 

Other - Retail, Retail

Marysville, WA – Sprinkler systems helps control fire at retail store; Fire started in semi-truck attached outside

Firefighters were called to the Value Village store on State Avenue just after midnight Sunday. A fire was burning in a semi-truck attached to the store and had spread into the building, said Christie Veley, spokeswoman for the Marysville Fire District. Crews went through the store’s roof. It took about three hours to bring the blaze under control. A sprinkler system in the store helped limit the spread of the fire. The store was not open Sunday morning, but employees were working on clean-up and hoped to open in the afternoon. Value Village sells second-hand clothes, furniture and other household items. The Snohomish County fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire, and plans to review surveillance video from the store.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Mercer Island, WA – Parking garage fire at retirement facility extinguished with help from sprinkler system

The Mercer Island Fire Department responded to reports of smoke coming from a parking garage of a retirement facility at the 2900 block of 76th Ave. SE at 2:48 p.m. on Wednesday. The building sustained limited damage caused by smoke. Two staff members were taken to a local hospital for smoke inhalation, but no residents or firefighters were injured.  As units were in route to the incident, additional reports were received indicating a car was on fire in the parking garage of the building. The alarm was immediately upgraded and additional units were requested. Two staff members tried to extinguish the fire with portable fire extinguishers with limited success prior to the arrival of the fire units. 

Arriving on scene within minutes, firefighters noticed a car fire burning within the garage causing a heavy smoke conditions, but were able to extinguish this fire with no extension beyond the vehicle in the parking garage. The staff, and residents, were alerted to shelter in place and close all windows and doors. The sprinkler system within the structure was activated and assisted with extinguishment of the fire, along with a single attack hoseline.  The four-story retirement facility was occupied with 47 residents and approximately 20 staff members when the fire started. Three Mercer Island, three Bellevue fire units, and three ambulances were used to mitigate the incident.

Grocery Store / Super Center, Retail

Moses Lake, WA – Sprinkler system activates to help stop fire at grocery store deli

The Moses Lake Safeway was evacuated Tuesday morning after a fire started in the deli section.

Moses Lake firefighters responded to find heavy smoke coming from the roof vents, according to Assistant Fire Chief Pete Kunjara.

The fire is out and firefighters are assessing the damage. Kunjara said the store’s sprinkler system did activate. It’s unclear if the flames caused damage to the roof.

No injuries were reported.

Other - Residential, Residential

Longview, WA – Laundry fire at homeless shelter contained by sprinkler system

All 80 residents of the Community House on Broadway emergency homeless shelter were evacuated Wednesday morning as a result of a dryer fire in the second-floor laundry room. One person went to St. John Medical Center for treatment of smoke inhalation, but otherwise no one was injured, said Longview Fire Chief Phil Jurmu.  The incident sparked an outpouring of assistance from the community. The Salvation Army, for example, provided blankets, 150 sandwiches, 130 bottles of water, fruit, snacks, diapers and baby bottles. It also was coordinating with the Commerce Avenue UBET Casino to serve a pizza dinner at the shelter Wednesday night, said Salvation Army Capt. Darryck Dwelle.

“The community came together so greatly in response to this. I’m amazed at everything. I figured we were going to be sitting out across the street by the chiropractor’s place all day,” shelter resident Crystal Moldenhauer said late in the morning. “It was amazing to see compassion and love and just care from the people that don’t even know us.”  Residents were expected to return to the shelter, located at 1107 Broadway, on Wednesday night.  A sprinkler system contained the fire to the second-floor laundry room, and firefighters finished dousing the fire within minutes of arriving shortly after 8 a.m., Jurmu said.

Water from the sprinklers and firefighting effort leaked down to the first floor into God’s Closet, a Community House ministry that gives clothing to low-income people. From there it poured into the basement and into a floor drain, Jurmu said. Firefighters and staff were working to limit water damage. Late in the morning, there was still a strong smell of smoke and burnt materials throughout the second floor and hallway leading to the laundry room. The smoke alarm, which was charred on the sides and damp from water, was still beeping faintly.

Jurmu termed the damage “minor to moderate.” Almost 80 people were staying at the shelter when the fire broke out, shelter staff reported. Shelter residents, which include dozens of children, were housed in the nearby Evangel Christian Fellowship Church in a large common area and were assisted by the Red Cross, Emergency Support Shelter, Salvation Army and other community members. The residents were brought food, blankets and other supplies.

Many of the residents were still in pajamas and had little of their belongings or knowledge of whether they would be salvageable Wednesday morning. Moldenhauer said the events of the morning were emotional for some people, and for her it caused a flashback to a fire that destroyed her father’s home when she was just 11.  “It put me back into a very sad place, like all I could do was get my family out of the (shelter),” she said. “My worry was getting my husband, getting my kids and getting out.”

Frank Morrison, director of Community House, said he was grateful for the help from the community. He said they had mental health staff available in the Evangel common area to help residents struggling with emotional or mental health responses to the fire. He said both staff and the residents were a big help in the morning and said several people stayed behind to help clean up some of the water in the shelter. “It was really cool. They just saw a need and jumped on it,” Morrison said. “We just deal with a large volume of people. We do the best we can with what we’ve got.”

Another shelter resident, James Jenne, is a former paramedic of 10 years. When he heard about the fire, he said he rushed inside and began helping evacuate the second floor. Jenne said he began making sure rooms were empty and doors were closed. “You get into that mindset and instinct just takes over,” he said. “Just making sure everybody was safe was my main concern. That’s all it ever is.”

Jenne said he hopes the community helps CHOB residents recover from the fire. He said many people were affected emotionally. He said he planned to continue walking around the common area soothing peoples’ worries and making sure they had the support and comfort they need. “I hope the community sees how much their help is needed now … to put things back to normal,” Jenne said. “Don’t look so down on these people because there’s some good people in there and we’re going to need some help redoing this.”