Office Building, Other Business Madison, WI – Sprinkler system extinguishes intentionally-set fire at office building October 11, 2016 viking210 Madison police and firefighters had to deal with a bizarre incident Friday night in an office building along the Beltline, where a man allegedly set fire and vandalized a suite of offices before crawling out, soaking wet, to waiting police. Dustin Palmer, 30, was taken into custody on five counts of criminal damage to property and disorderly conduct, and could face an arson charge, Madison police said. The incident started at about 8 p.m. Friday at the office building at 2601 W. Beltline, the building on the corner of Todd Drive and the Beltline. According to police: Palmer’s intention was to vandalize, not to steal, police said. “Damage was reported on several floors of the high-rise building,” said police spokesman Joel DeSpain. “Glass was broken, items were pulled off of walls and smeared blood was found in different locations.” Before Palmer allegedly set a fire in an office suite on the fifth floor, he went into the restaurant, scared staff and helped himself to a fountain drink. The fire brought firefighters to the scene, called by police as they searched for the suspect. “The crew from Ladder 6 saw dense smoke in the fifth-floor room and found that a small fire had been extinguished by the automatic fire sprinkler system,” said Joel Kneifel of the MFD. Firefighters evacuated the building and searched the part of the building near the fire to make sure nobody was hurt or trapped. When police officers entered the damaged fifth-floor offices, Palmer was ordered to come out. “He crawled to them alternating between yelling nonsensical things and coughing,” DeSpain said. “Officers pulled him to safety and took him down several flights of stairs as the MFD mopped up the scene.”
Athletic Club/Sports Facility, Other Business Milwaukee, WI – Sprinkler system helps contain fire at family entertainment center September 13, 2016 viking210 Firefighters were able to contain a business fire at 76th and Brown Deer Road early this morning. Crews responded around 3:30 Monday morning. It happened at Kangaroo Milwaukee, a family friendly entertainment facility in a strip mall. Milwaukee Fire Department officials tell us it appears that the sprinkler system helped to contain the fire. No word yet on the cause of the fire.
Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant Madison, WI – Overnight restaurant fire contained by sprinkler system; Business reopens next day September 9, 2016 viking210 An automatic sprinkler system saved a Downtown restaurant from significant damage after a kitchen fire early Wednesday. Aichan Weng, who goes by “Wendy,” said she should have her restaurant, Dragon I, 422 State St., back open by 2 p.m. Thursday after meeting with her insurance adjuster and the city health department. Her insurance agent Brad Dillman of Dillman Insurance said Weng just needs to replace a sprinkler head and clean up a bit. A passerby noticed a fire inside Dragon I just after 12:30 a.m. and called 911, said fire department spokesperson Cynthia Schuster. The caller said the fire was in the back kitchen and that the sprinkler system had already been activated. Upon arrival, firefighters saw the fire and broke a glass door to enter the restaurant, Schuster said in a release. In the kitchen, they found a large pot with something burning inside and around it. They believe what was burning was a plastic cutting board laid on top of the pot while the stove burner was still set on “low,” she said. Firefighters extinguished the fire, and turned off the burner and the automatic sprinklers. “Fire damage had been well contained thanks to the automatic sprinkler,” Schuster said, adding that there was no water damage to the restaurant because of a floor drain under the activated sprinkler head. Weng, who also owns Ichiban on Park Street, bought Dragon I in 2014 from Ray Sze, who also used to own Nam’s Noodle restaurant on Regent Street. She said she couldn’t yet put a price tag on any damage to the restaurant. “It’s no big deal,” she said. “It’s so lucky there are no big problems.” The 4-year-old Dragon I serves all types of Southeast Asian cuisine: Vietnamese, Thai, Indonesian, Singaporean and Malaysian. It also offers some Korean, Japanese and Chinese selections.
Apartment Building, Residential Manitowoc, WI – Fire in utility closet at apartment building contained by sprinkler system August 18, 2016 viking210 Officials say a Manitowoc apartment was damaged by fire on Tuesday night. Crews were called to 2240 S. 42nd Street just before 6 p.m. Firefighters found that the sprinkler system was spraying water in a utility room. There was damage to the building’s main electrical feed and there was a natural gas leak. Everyone inside the building got out safely. Firefighters eventually found a fire in a lower-unit apartment. The sprinkler system had contained it to the immediate area, and firefighters used a water extinguisher to put out the remaining fire. Crews were on the scene for about 90 minutes. The apartment involved had fire and smoke damage, but there was no damage to other parts of the building. Firefighters say it appears that an electrical problem caused the fire, but the fire is still being investigated.
Apartment Building, Residential Madison, WI – Sprinkler system halts apartment fire caused by unattended candle August 2, 2016 viking210 Authorities in Madison say an automatic sprinkler system helped put out an apartment fire after a candle was left burning in a bedroom on the city’s south side over the weekend. According to the Madison Fire Department, people who live in an apartment on the 4700 block of Jenewein Rd. left the candle burning just after 11:30 a.m. Sunday while they went out to eat. Authorities say the flame from the candle set nearby clothes on fire before spreading to the window coverings. The fire sprinkler system inside the apartment building was activated soon after the fire began to spread. According to the MFD, the fire had already been put out when firefighters got to the apartment. Authorities say everyone was able to get out safely, but people were not able to spend the night inside of the apartment because of the damage done to the bedroom. Officials with the American Red Cross helped the residents find other places to stay. Despite that, the MFD says minimal damage was done to the apartment because the fire was put out so quickly.
Residential, Residential High Rise Madison, WI – Residential high-rise fire limited by sprinkler system; No injuries reported May 15, 2016 viking210 The Madison Fire Department says the automatic fire sprinkler system kept a fire in the YWCA building from spreading. Firefighters were called to the building at 101 E. Mifflin Street just before 5 p.m. Saturday evening. The fire department says the fire was in the fifth floor hallway. The first unit in found heavy smoke on the fifth floor, so firefighters activated a second alarm. With the help of the sprinklers, fire crews had the fire under control by about 5:15 p.m. Everyone who lived in the building was able to return. The Madison Fire Department says the Red Cross helped some families with emergency needs and Metro Transit provided a bus for residents to stay warm while the building was evacuated. Damage is estimated at $25,000. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. ******** UPDATE (WKOW) — Fire Chief Steven Davis on the scene says the fifth floor of the YWCA, where the fire was located, is residential housing. The people there have been evacuated. No one’s been asked to leave the rest of the building, however. Crews were able to put out the fire. No injuries are reported – though there is some water damage. Investigators on the scene are trying to determine the cause and when the fifth-floor residents can be let back in. ******** MADISON (WKOW) — Madison firefighters are responding to a second alarm at the downtown YWCA location. The fire department supervisor on duty says the call came in just before 5:00 p.m. for smoke coming from the fifth floor of the structure at 101 E. Mifflin.
Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant Madison, WI – Laundry fire at Radisson Hotel contained by sprinkler system May 7, 2016 viking210 Guests staying at the Radisson Hotel at 517 Grand Canyon Drive were able to return to their rooms on Friday night after they were temporarily displaced by a small laundry room fire. The Madison Fire Department was called to the hotel around 11:50 p.m. to address smoke that was coming from a utility room on the first floor, according to spokeswoman Amanda Hornung. When firefighters arrived, the carpet outside the first floor laundry room was soaked with water, said Hornung. Officials said that the crew found a moderate level of smoke, but no heat or active fire. Firefighters did report that one sprinkler head had been activated in the laundry room and that the fire was contained to a small area in the room.
Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Fond du Lac, WI – Sprinklers keep fire from spreading at Mercury Marine April 30, 2016 viking210 The sprinkler system installed at Mercury Marine stopped a fire from spreading Wednesday night. At 11:23 p.m., Fond du Lac Fire and Rescue responded to a report of a fire in the dust collector at Mercury Marine Plant 98. Upon arrival, crews found the sprinkler system activated, limiting the spread of the fire. Some smoke was in the building. The crews entered the building and contained the fire to the dust collection system. Access to the dust collector was difficult, so putting out the fire was time-consuming, firefighters say. No injuries were reported.
Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant Ashwaubenon, WI – Early morning fire at fiberglass manufacturer limited by sprinkler system April 27, 2016 viking210 No one was inside an Ashwaubenon fiberglass maker when fire broke out early Tuesday morning, according to Ashwaubenon Public Safety. Firefighters say it appears a some machinery–possibly an air compressor–caught fire in the back of the building, located in the 2900 hundred block of Holmgren Way. A sprinkler system alerted crews to the fire and prevented the blaze from spreading to the fiberglass material inside the warehouse. “Actually the contents inside, we had no extension inside to the contents,” said Chief Eric Dunning, Ashwaubenon Public Safety. “If that would’ve caught, we’d still be fighting it right now. The fire stayed with the machinery itself, but with the contents inside there, this could’ve been far worse.” The building did sustain smoke damage. Crews were entering the business to investigate what caused the equipment to spark a fire. “Right now, I’m not sure what the estimate cost of the machinery is,” Chief Dunning said. “And then obviously with the heavy smoke, and there’s quite a few of what appears to be fiberglass halls in there, if there were smoke damage to the halls that were inside the facility.” The chief stressed the importance of having a sprinkler system. “We’ll take that in the luck category. We’ll take that as a win for us,” Chief Dunning said. “What also helped is we had an active sprinkler system, so the sprinkler system kept things to a minimum, where if the building wasn’t sprinklered it would’ve for sure spread into other contents and we wouldn’t have been alerted until it was coming through the building.” Holmgren Way and Ramada Way were closed for a brief time near the scene of a fire. The roads reopened after 5 a.m.
Office Building, Other Business Appleton, WI – Sprinkler system prevents fire in office building from spreading; Adjacent businesses spared April 25, 2016 viking210 The Appleton Fire Department released a statement today saying they were dispatched to a fire at the Epiphany-Rose building around noon today for a report of smoke in the building. According to statements by workers at Kerber-Rose Certified Public Accounts, located in Suite B, they had noted that a bank of electrical lights had stopped functioning. After investigating and finding no reason for the failure, the individuals continued with their work. A couple hours later, another bank of electrical lights also failed. One of the workers then heard a “crackling and popping” sound in the ceiling above his work station. Shortly after that, smoke was seen coming from the ceiling area and the fire sprinkler system activated. The Appleton Fire Department credits the automatic fire sprinkler system for keeping the fire from spreading further. Upon arrival of fire units, smoke was found throughout the Suite. Upon investigation, a fire was found burning in the attic. Automatic fire sprinklers and a fire wall in the attic prevented the fire from spreading to the Epiphany Law Office, located in Suite A. Fire crews quickly extinguished the fire but due to the blown insulation in the attic, fire crews remained on scene for several hours conducting overhaul operations to ensure that the fire was completely extinguished. Fire crews also assisted in removing numerous items from the interior of Suite to prevent further damage. No one was injured at the fire. Initial estimates are that the fire damage was at least $150,000.
