Tag Archives: Wisconsin

Apartment Building, Residential

Allouez, WI – Apartment closet fire put out by fire sprinklers

The Green Bay Metro Fire Department says 38 residents of an assisted-living facility were evacuated during a fire Friday evening.

The sheriff’s office tells us there was a fire in a resident’s room at Bishop’s Court on E. St. Joseph St. in Allouez. Firefighters arrived to find heavy smoke in the hallways. The fire was in a closet in one of the apartments.

Five people were medically evaluated on the scene. Three were taken to a hospital for smoke inhlation: one staff member and two residents — including the resident of the apartment where the fire started. A battalion chief told us they should all be OK.

The battalion chief credited the sprinkler system in the facility for doing “a great job.”

The fire department says 60 residents are displaced temporarily while repairs are made to the fire suppression system. The fire department says some are being housed in another building at Bishop’s Court but some will have to be moved to other assisted-living facilities.

A report from the GBMFD says the cause of the fire was accidental but it doesn’t provide details. The estimated cost of damage to the property is $20,000.

Apartment Building, Residential

Janesville, WI – Sprinkler system extinguished closet fire at apartment

A major fire at a Janesville apartment building is avoided thanks to a working sprinkler system.

The Janesville Fire Department says firefighters were dispatched to a multi-family residence on the 200 block of North Franklin Street just before 9:30 Wednesday night.

Captain John McManus says a basket of clothing started on fire in a closet when the sprinklers kicked in and doused the flames.

McManus said the fire could have caused a lot of destruction had the sprinklers not worked. He estimated the building had about $1,000 in water damage from the sprinkler system.

About 10 to 12 people were displaced. The Red Cross helped the residents find overnight shelter.

The fire remains under investigation.

Apartment Building, Residential

Appleton, WI – Apartment kitchen fire put out by fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

Officials credit a sprinkler system for limiting the spread of an Appleton apartment fire. Crews were called to the units along the 400-block of North Richmond Street around 6:00 this morning on the report of a water flow alarm. They found that a fire had started in the vent hood of a microwave–but was put out by the sprinklers. The apartment was vacant at the time and was being cleaned out. No one was hurt. Damage is estimated at 60-thousand dollars.

Adult Care/Rehab Center, Hospital/Care Facility

Slinger, WI – Fire sprinkler system puts out fire caused by malfunctioning heating unit at rehabilitation center; No injuries reported

There was a bit of smoke and a minor fire at The Pavilion at Glacier Valley, 1900 American Eagle Drive, on Monday afternoon.

Slinger Police Captain Joshua Gullickson said the initial call came in at 4:20 p.m.

The call was for a sprinkler system activation. “When officers arrived smoke was visible but no flames,” said Gullickson. “Slinger Fire Department was dispatched to the scene and the cause of the sprinkler activation was an overheat malfunction of a heating unit in one wing of the facility.”

Gullickson said residents were moved to a different part of the building.

No injuries were reported to residents, staff or emergency responders.

The Pavilion is described as “short-term rehabilitation, respite and long-term care.”

Food Processing, Manufacturing

Watertown, WI – Fire sprinklers put out fire at chocolate manufacturer before fire department arrived

Clasen Quality Chocolate, 420 E. Horseshoe Road, started off the new year in a unique way Wednesday.

At 1:22 p.m., the Watertown Fire Department responded to a call for a structure fire at the factory. According to Watertown Fire Chief Kraig Biefeld, the blaze started when a box full of products caught on fire, but the fire was limited to just the box. Sprinklers put it out before units arrived.

“The sprinkler system did its job. That’s why we advocate the use of sprinklers in buildings,” Biefeld said.

The fire department sent the on-duty crew and Biefeld, who went to the call, said with the fire out, the crew went to make sure the fire was out and to ventilate the building.

Mutual aid was initially called, but was quickly called off, according to Biefeld.

Clasen Quality Chocolate produces a variety of chocolate coatings of different colors, flavors and sizes as well as 20 different varieties of chocolate and numerous fillings and spreads.

According to the company website, Clasen Quality Chocolate, “has transitioned from a small, regional compound coating manufacturer to a major supplier of both standard and customized formulations and value-added, confectionery ingredients across North America” and has facilities in Watertown, Middleton with corporate offices and the company innovation center in Madison.

Apartment Building, Residential

Madison, WI – Parking garage fire quickly put out by fire sprinklers

Dozens of people are displaced after an apartment in Madison lost power and the property manager says it could take up to nearly a week to repair.

The Ovation 309 building located on 309 Johnson Street in Madison had a fire in the parking garage Tuesday that was quickly put out by the sprinkler system, according to a Madison Fire Department Public Information Officer. They did not release the cause of the fire.

NBC15 obtained an email sent to Ovation residents Wednesday from the property manager.

The email stated an electrical component was damaged and caused the outage. It also stated “general and electrical contractors have been on-site all morning working hard to restore power.”

According to the email, the “best case scenario” is the issue will be repaired in two days. However, if parts are unavailable, power loss could extend to nearly a week.

Hotel / Motel, Hotel / Restaurant

Glendale, WI – Fire contained to maintenance closet on third floor of motel thanks to fire sprinklers; No injuries reported

A Motel 6 in Glendale caught fire Tuesday morning, Dec. 17. Thankfully, the building’s fire sprinklers did their job. 

The alarm came at about 11 a.m., sending the North Shore Fire Department to the motel on Port Washington Road. 

Everybody inside the building was evacuated; some of them elderly and some in wheelchairs. 

The fire was confined to a maintenance closet on the third floor and the sprinkler system helped crews control the fire quickly. 

“Unfortunately one of the things that comes with fire sprinklers is a lot of water, because they’re doing their job to put the fire out. So we’re dealing with a lot of water damage. Not a ton of fire damage, it’s just primarily contained to that affected room,” said Capt. Dan Tyk, North Shore Fire and Rescue. 

One occupant of the hotel reported a minor injury that occurred while evacuating the building. She was evaluated by paramedics on scene and declined transportation to a hospital. There were no other injuries reported.

Fire and smoke damage is minimal, but there is extensive water damage on all three floors due to the activation of the fire sprinkler system.  

The preliminary damage is estimated around $100,000. 

The exact cause of the fire remains under investigation by North Shore Fire/Rescue and the Glendale Police Department.

Apartment Building, Residential

Madison, WI – Fire sprinklers stop dumpster fire in underground residential parking garage

A dumpster fire that ignited inside an underground residential parking garage was put to a stop by an automatic fire sprinkler early Saturday morning.

Just after 3:00 a.m. on Saturday, engine Co. 3 responded to the Carbon Apartments on Winnebago Street to investigate a general fire alarm.
Several tenants approached firefighters as they arrived to tell them there’s smoke coming from one of the doors of the underground parking garage.

The crew entered the garage and found an automatic sprinkler activated.

Underneath was a dumpster where a fire occurred. The fire was already extinguished and had not spread beyond its area of origin.

Hospital/Care Facility, Other - Hospital/Medical

Madison, WI – Fire sprinkler activation contains fire to dehumidifier; No injuries reported

A recalled appliance at a Madison assisted care home malfunctioned Monday afternoon, causing a fire, officials said. 

The Madison Fire Department said crews were notified of a problem at 7710 S. Brookline Drive at 3:07 p.m. after an automatic fire sprinkler activated, sending an alarm to Dane County 911 Public Safety Communications Center.

The sprinkler kept the fire contained, which allowed on-site staff to deploy a fire extinguisher and put it out, the fire department said. Firefighters were directed to the location of the fire and found a heavily damaged dehumidifier.

The dehumidifier in use was an older model that had several recalls, fire officials said. A drainage tube attached to the collection tank allowed the dehumidifier to run without interruption.

The fire department said that although the fire produced a lot of smoke, damage was confined to the dehumidifier, and there were no injuries or displaced occupants because the automatic sprinkler caught the fire right away. 

The fire department said crews have responded to a number of fires involving dehumidifiers that were recalled, were older models or were simply left to run constantly for indefinite periods of time.

“It is unsafe to allow your dehumidifier to run uninterrupted,” fire officials said. “Homeowners and occupants should use the proper collection tank which, when full, will prompt the dehumidifier to stop running until the tank can be emptied.”