Other - Retail, Retail Everett, WA – Sprinkler system activates to help control Black Friday fire at Toys R Us store November 30, 2015 viking210 The Everett Mall Toys R Us store was closed by a smoky fire on Friday morning. Store employees called 911 and safely evacuated all customers from the building after seeing flames in a stockroom. The fire activated a sprinkler and workers tried to put out the fire with extinguishers but were unsuccessful. When firefighters arrived at about 7:45 a.m., they found heavy smoke inside the store. After the fire was extinguished, fans were brought in to remove the smoke. The cause of the fire is under investigation, but it is not considered suspicious. Managers had not decided whether to try and reopen the store later on Black Friday.
College/University (on campus), School / University Richland, WA – Fire in university laboratory is put out by sprinkler system; No injuries November 10, 2015 viking210 Several students and staff had to be evacuated Monday at WSU Tri-Cities after a small explosion and fire. It happened just before two in the afternoon inside the Bioproducts, Sciences and Engineering Laboratory. The school says there was a minor fire after a cylinder of compressed gas exploded unexpectedly. The Director of Marketing and Communications at the school says the building’s sprinkler system put the fire out and no one got hurt. Students were evacuated from the east and west buildings but were allowed back in shortly after. Firefighters say they’re now looking into what happened. Richland Fire Department Chief Tom Huntington said, “the sprinkler system activated, alarm system activated everybody was able to get out safe. Our initial response and activity were here was to make sure the buildings were clear and everybody was out. Right now what they’re working on then is to make sure there is no secondary spills chemical spills things like that associated with the explosion make sure the building is secure then we will start the investigation and figure out what happened.” Staff at the school says the BSEL labs are now canceled until further notice, and students should log on to Blackboard to check if lectures have been moved to a new location.
Apartment Building, Residential Spokane Valley, WA – Sprinklers stop apartment deck fire from spreading to surrounding units October 15, 2015 viking210 Spokane Valley Fire Department said they responded to a deck fire at a second-story apartment early Sunday morning. Crews arrived at the Parkside Apartment complex around 4:00 a.m. Sunday. The alarm and sprinkler systems were activated and crews said the sprinkler stopped the fire from spreading to surrounding units. SVFD crews said they knocked the fire down quickly and contained it to the deck. All residents were safely evacuated, including the two adults and two children that lived in the unit. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill Port Townsend, WA – Sprinkler system handles small fire at paper mill September 14, 2015 viking210 Emergency personnel responded to a fire around 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 8, at the Port Townsend Paper Corp. No one was injured. There was minor damage to equipment and the machine was expected to be back up and running Tuesday night. General Manager Carr Tyndall, on vacation in South Carolina, said Tuesday afternoon that sprinklers had gone off when a fire started in a dryer section on Paper Machine No. 2. East Jefferson Fire Rescue (EJFR) was called as a precaution. Kevin Scott, director of sustainability at the mill, and Bill Beezley, public information officer at EJFR, confirmed that firefighters and medics arrived as support. Beezley said that crews were dispatched to “heavy black smoke near the northernmost smoke stack.” Responding crews reported that fire had broken out in dust on top of the second paper machine and that the mill’s sprinkler system had extinguished it by the time the crew arrived. “EJFR firefighters spent some time hitting hot spots and mopping up before departing 45 minutes later,” Beezley said. “Paper Machine No. 2 is down for now. And it’s probably going to be another three hours for cleaning,” Tyndall said of being told there was no significant damage. He said the sprinkler heads would need to be replaced. Tyndall said it would not surprise him if paper dust in the third dryer section caught on fire. He said that was common. Flames were initially reported being visible from a roof, then only black smoke was visible, as of 10:10 a.m. The flames had been “knocked down” as of 10:14 a.m., according to responder traffic heard on JeffCom dispatch. The mill has two machines that produce kraft paper products.
College/University (on campus), School / University Bellingham, WA – Sprinklers put out fire in chemistry building at Western Washington University August 27, 2015 viking210 A chemical fire erupted in a Western Washington University chemistry building on Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 25. No one was injured, and the building was evacuated right after the fire broke out about 5:15 p.m., said WWU spokesman Paul Cocke. Student Melany Fry was in room 370 of Morse Hall with six other students when the fire broke out. “We heard a big bang and a whoosh,” Fry said. Fry said the fire started by a dry-solvent pump, which keeps water out of solvents. She didn’t think anybody was working with that pump at the time. The flames were initially about 15 feet high, Fry said. All of the students got out quickly while somebody else tried putting the fire out with an extinguisher. Firefighters responded and saw a plume coming from the building. They set up a perimeter far from the building to keep everyone away as they tried to determine what chemicals were involved. The building’s sprinklers put out the fire. Firefighters broke out windows to ventilate the building, and conducted a search for anyone who might still be inside, though the building had been cleared. They later ordered an evacuation of the nearby biology building. A hazardous materials team was brought in to examine the lab and ensure the scene was safe. Jared Chang, another WWU student who was in the building at the time, described the chemicals the students were working with as “a bunch of nasty, organic solvents that you don’t want on fire.” What caused the fire was under investigation Tuesday evening. No immediate damage estimate was available.
Other / Not Specified, Other Business Seattle, WA – Sprinklers activate to help limit damage in arson fire August 9, 2015 viking210 The Seattle Police Department’s Arson Bomb Squad is investigating after the alley entrance door to gay dance club Neighbours was set on fire Friday morning. Seattle Fire arrived to the scene just after 11:30 AM to find water pouring from the back of the Broadway nightclub after the venue’s fire sprinkler system was activated by the small fire. The club’s alley doors were burned in the fire but there was no other damage reported beyond the flooding. There were no reported injuries. The club has not announced any closures related to the fire. The Seattle Fire Marshal has determined that the door fire was intentionally set. SPD is now investigating the incident.
Apartment Building, Residential Richland, WA – Sprinkler system contains apartment fire started by improperly discarded cigarettes July 30, 2015 viking210 A pair of apartment fires in Richland were likely started by smoldering cigarettes put in flower pots. Fire officials are warning people not to put cigarettes out in flower pots following the fires on Buena Court and Queensgate Drive. The Buena Court fire broke out July 25 about 1:30 p.m. and the Queensgate blaze started Monday about 2:15 a.m., fire officials said. A sprinkler system helped put out the second fire. No injures were reported.
Other - Retail, Retail Bonney Lake, WA – Sprinkler system activates to help contain fire at thrift store July 25, 2015 viking210 Firefighters from East Pierce Fire and Rescue quickly contained an electrical fire at the Bonney Lake Goodwill Thrift store early this morning. Just before 4 a.m., someone who had been walking behind the building at 21153 State Route 410 East, reported the fire. At the same time, the building’s automatic fire alarm notified dispatch. According to East Pierce Fire and Rescue Battalion Chief Jay Adams, the fire started at an electrical panel and had spread to a nearby wall. It was primarily contained to a small room where the electrical panel was located. “Although there was some smoke throughout the store, for the most part, the smoke was contained to that room,” he says. The sprinkler system activated, but only near the fire. A ladder truck from Central Pierce Fire and Rescue also responded. No injuries were reported.
Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill Union Gap, WA – Fire at paper mill controlled by sprinkler system July 15, 2015 viking210 Yakima fire crews say a fire at the International Paper company in Union Gap Tuesday morning could have been much worse if it weren’t for their working sprinkler system. A news release from the fire department said people reported seeing smoke coming from the roof of the building. The fire remained on one part of the plant, a dust collecting hopper, because the automatic sprinkler system kicked on and helped maintain the flames. Fire crews put out the fire and cleaned up debris from the damage. The cost of the damage is not known at this time. Yakima firefighters say the cause was a hot ember that got into the dust collection hopper. The news release from the fire department also said the whole building could have been a total loss if they did not have a functioning sprinkler system in place.
Athletic Club/Sports Facility, Other Business Longview, WA – Fire in sauna room at YMCA extinguished with help from sprinkler system June 30, 2015 viking210 1 Comment Authorities said the fire started around 8 a.m. at the Longview YMCA when a wooden bucket used to dump water on hot rocks in the club’s second-story dry sauna caught fire. The sauna normally warms up an hour before the club opens, but the bucket was not supposed to be on top of the rocks, Longview Fire said Saturday. The sprinkler system activated to help control the fire. The club reopened after the fire was put out, Longview Fire said. There were no injuries.
