Sprinkler Saves.
From time to time, the Fire Marshals Association hears about stories that speak about people or property that were saved because of properly functioning sprinklers. Here are some of those stories.
sprinkler system help put out an apartment fire
By Jeff Rivenbark
GASTONIA, NC (WBTV) - Officials say a sprinkler system help put out an apartment fire in Gastonia Sunday evening before it could get out of control.
The fire was in a two-story apartment on South Street and was reported around 6:45 p.m.
Gastonia firefighters said there was a small cooking fire on the second floor, but the sprinkler system extinguished the fire before crews arrived.
There were no injuries, but the fire caused about $10,000 in damage.
Gastonia Fire Department Spokesman Jim Landis said North Carolina lawmakers are in the process of requiring residential sprinklers in all new homes built.
These sprinklers, he said, would help contain or extinguish fires as it did at the apartment fire on South Street.
"These residential sprinklers have proven to save lives and property," Landis added.
Earlier in the day, firefighters responded to a house fire sparked by a faulty baseboard heater.
The fire was on North Webb Street and was reported around 1:20 p.m.
Heavy flames and smoke were visible from the rear of the home when firefighters arrived.
The residents got out safely before firefighters arrived and no one was injured. Firefighters had the fire out within ten minutes.
The fire caused about $45,000 in damage.
Posted: Feb 15, 2010 11:31 AM EST
Copyright 2010 WBTV. All rights reserved.
Student cooking causes small fire at San Jose State dormitory
Students cooking in a dormitory at San Jose State University triggered a small kitchen fire on Sunday afternoon, but residents were safely evacuated and the blaze was promptly extinguished by sprinklers.
The two-alarm fire was reported about 1:30 p.m. in a second-floor dormitory room in Campus Village, a high-rise complex on the southeast side of campus on South Ninth Street, San Jose fire Capt. Scott Kouns said.
"Cooking was left unattended," Kouns said. "By the time we got there, there was a lot of smoke and water. It's more of a water problem than a smoke problem."
An estimated 75 to 100 people were evacuated; one person was evaluated for smoke inhalation but refused treatment.
A damage estimate was not available.
Sprinkler Saves Texas Store
HOUSTON - A southwest Houston Goodwill store was spared from a fire at a shopping center, KPRC Local 2 reported.
The fire started inside a vacant fabric store next door to the Goodwill store in a shopping center on Richmond Avenue at Highway 6 at about 11:30 p.m. Sunday.
The fire spread quickly and caused the roof of the building to collapse.
Firefighters said their primary concern was keeping the fire from spreading to the Goodwill store.
Fire reached a brick wall at the Goodwill store, triggering the sprinkler system. The store sustained minor water damage.
Arson investigators are looking into the cause, but said they believe the fire was an accident.
Fire Damages Shopping Center
Redmond Fire Marshal says sprinkler system may have saved a life
A sprinkler system at a local apartment complex is being credited with saving at least one life last weekend.
At noon on Sunday, Jan. 10, the Redmond Fire Department responded to a call in an apartment building in the 18600 block of Redmond – Fall City Road. The water flow from the sprinkler system automatically activated the fire alarm system, alerting occupants of the situation and dispatching Redmond Fire, Eastside Fire, and Eastside Emergency Medical Services to the scene.
The first arriving fire crews were met by the occupant of the involved unit and confirmed there had been a fire in the bedding. The fire was suppressed by the one sprinkler head located in the apartment bedroom ceiling. At the time of the fire, the occupant was asleep in the bed, but escaped with only minor injuries. The bed and mattress were slightly damaged by the fire and the apartment unit sustained minor water damage. No adjacent units reported damage.
It is undetermined how the fire started, but Rich Gieseke, Deputy Fire Marshal for the Redmond Fire Department, said it most likely was due to improper use of an electric heating pad. The sprinkler contained it to a one-foot by two-foot area on the mattress and bedding.
"This is a great example of how effective fire sprinklers can be in our homes, apartments, and workplaces," said Gieseke. "This system extinguished the fire prior to our arrival and kept the fire from extending beyond its initial involvement. If they hadn't had a sprinkler system, we may have been talking about residents not surviving and far worse property damage."
Fire 'disaster' averted
A city-ordered sprinkler system extinguishes a potentially devastating blaze in the Old Port.
Fire broke out in an unused elevator shaft at 10 Exchange St. in the Old Port early Wednesday. The fire was doused by a sprinkler system the city ordered the landlord to install earlier this year.
PORTLAND — A sprinkler system that city officials forced a landlord to install earlier this year may have saved a building in the heart of the Old Port from major damage.
Fire broke out in an unused elevator shaft on the second floor at 10 Exchange St. about 1 a.m. Wednesday, triggering a fire alarm.
Even before firefighters arrived, a sprinkler extinguished most of the blaze, minimizing the damage from fire, smoke and water, fire officials said.
The fire was notable for what didn't happen, said Deputy Fire Chief Michael Shutts.
"Without the sprinkler system, the fire would have spread uncontrolled throughout the building with significant loss of property to Portland's Old Port," Shutts said in a prepared statement Wednesday.
The unused elevator shaft runs from the basement to the fourth floor of the building. It provides a conduit for natural gas and other utilities.
The city forced Joseph Soley to evict his tenants from 24 apartments in the building's third and fourth floors because of inadequate fire and safety systems. City officials feared at the time that a fire would go undetected and spread quickly, possibly killing tenants on the upper floors.
Soley agreed to upgrade the systems needed to keep businesses operating on the first and second floors. Those improvements included the sprinkler systemthat put out the fire Wednesday morning, city officials said.
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Sprinkler Save In Spring Hill TN
Spring Hill TN
Cooking fire started and one fire sprinkler saved christmas for all those in apt complex, bottom 1st floor far back apt on a 3 story apt building.
Spring Hill Fire, TN
Unsprinklered Condo Fire in Community with Residential Sprinkler Ordinance
This Township has a residential sprinkler ordinance, and has hundreds of residences sprinklered.
Fire destroys two condos
By: CHRISTOPHER RUVO
The Intelligencer
The fast moving blaze displaced at least six people.
The roaring fire had torn a hole in the side of the
"That's a family's life in there," said Ed Parry of
Indeed.
A fire that broke out around 11 a.m. Thursday destroyed two condominiums and resulted in damage to two others on the 200 block of
The fire displaced at least six people and drew around 100 firefighters from Bucks and
A firefighter was transported to an area hospital. Witnesses said he was taken from the scene on a stretcher. Word on his condition was not immediately available.
An elderly woman who
The raging flames were causing such quick damage that at one point firefighters were made to evacuate the condominiums and continue the fight outside.
PECO cut utilities to the fire-hit units. Other condominiums were also affected by the utility outage, but Lesniak said their utilities were restored later in the day.
The condominiums did not have a sprinkler system. They were built before current codes requiring sprinklers were put in place, said Warrington Township Communications Officer Gay Currie.
No injuries reported in The Reserve fire (TN)
Posted: Friday, December 11, 2009 3:16 pm
As quickly as the structure fire was called into the department Tuesday evening at The Reserve apartments on Peach Street, it was extinguished.
Martin Fire Chief Russell Schwahn credits the sprinkler system in place at the apartment complex that resulted in minimal damage.
“Thank God for sprinklers. If it wasn’t for a sprinkler system out there, they would not have a Building 100.”
The call came in approximately 9:10 Tuesday evening. Within four minutes, the MFD responded with 17 personnel, according to the report.
Once the complex was evacuated, the department entered a second story apartment that was on fire.
The Martin Police Department confirmed there was a visible fire in the kitchen of the apartment.
According to the report, as the crew entered the room they found a pot on the stove and a vent-a-hood that was on fire. Within a few minutes, the sprinkler system had extinguished the fire.
Schwahn said the lower level of the apartment complex sustained minor water damage, but no injuries were reported as a result of the fire.
The damage at The Reserve on Peach Street was estimated at $10,000.
The MFD was on the scene for approximately one hour.
Suspicious Fire extinguished by one fire sprinkler head
Officials seek tips in hotel fire
Mark Schlachtenhaufen
The
Edmond Fire Maj. Mike Barnes said a hotel occupant, his wife and their new baby were among those who safely exited the Broadway Suites Hotel, 1305 S. Broadway, after they were alerted by the hotel’s sprinkler-alarm system at 1:37 a.m. Monday.
A caller said the fire was located in the laundry area of the building, Barnes said. He said he heard the hiss of the fire sprinkler system in the hallway from his apartment, Barnes said. He said the fire alarm system then activated, alerting the occupants of the fire.
Fire crews at Fire Station 2, located near the hotel, were dispatched. When they arrived 2.5 minutes later they discovered that the hotel’s fire sprinkler system had not only controlled the fire, but had extinguished it, Barnes said.
“The fire protection systems did a fantastic job,” Barnes said. “It is always a relief to see the building occupants standing outside when fire crews arrive.”
Barnes said all of the hotel occupants were able to return to their rooms after the systems were reset. The estimated cost of fire damage is $300-$500, he said. Barnes praised hotel management for their diligence in keeping the systems maintained and operational.
The peak months for home heating fires are December, January and February, according to the National Fire Protection Association. The most dangerous time to have a fire is overnight, between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., Barnes said.
“Time passes very quickly when we sleep, but fire sprinklers and smoke alarms never sleep, protecting us 24-7,” Barnes said. “Test your smoke alarm today.”
The
Sprinkler save at Harvard University
Fire Displaces HBS Students HBS
By WILLIAM N. WHITE, CRIMSON STAFF WRITER
Published: Monday, December 07, 2009
A fire broke out in a dormitory at
Firefighters were dispatched to the scene at 2:14 p.m. Thursday, after hot exhaust from a generator escaped from a ventilation system and ignited insulation in the attic of McCulloch Hall, according to Boston Fire Department Spokesman Steve MacDonald. He said that roughly 35 firefighters responded and noted that the building’s sprinkler system was activated.
The students who live in the affected building—located on the east end of the HBS campus—are being temporarily housed in a dorm usually used for the Business School’s executive education program, which is currently out of session, according to HBS Spokesman Brian C. Kenny.
No external damage to the building was visible Friday afternoon, but some students who have been inside said damage appeared extensive in places.
“My room was the last room that was accessible,” said Dominic A. Charles, who entered the building to retrieve belongings Thursday. “The ceiling outside my friend’s room had just completely collapsed in the hallway.”
Students living in other parts of the building said the only damage they noticed ranged from waterlogged carpets to a “smoky smell.”
Kenny said that all students’ rooms were accessible by Friday afternoon. Around 3 p.m. on Friday, a few students were lined up to enter the building, escorted by maintenance workers in hard hats.
About two-thirds of the building’s residents should be able to return to their rooms by the middle of next week, Kenny said. Others who live in more severely affected parts of the building will not be able to return until January, after repair work is completed.
Kenny added that the school has given money to a few students whose belongings may have been ruined so that they can purchase necessities.
Amar Kumar, a student who lives in the building, complimented the HBS administration for their quick response to the fire. “They’ve been very communicative,” he said.
Kenny said that school officials believe that their response was effective, and that they are grateful for the positive outcome.
“We’re just glad there were no life-threatening injuries to anybody,” Kenny said. “It could’ve been much, much worse.”
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2009/12/7/students-kenny-building-fire/
Sprinkler System Extinguishes Hotel Fire
Officials seek tips in hotel fire
Mark Schlachtenhaufen
The
Edmond Fire Maj. Mike Barnes said a hotel occupant, his wife and their new baby were among those who safely exited the Broadway Suites Hotel, 1305 S. Broadway, after they were alerted by the hotel’s sprinkler-alarm system at 1:37 a.m. Monday.
A caller said the fire was located in the laundry area of the building, Barnes said. He said he heard the hiss of the fire sprinkler system in the hallway from his apartment, Barnes said. He said the fire alarm system then activated, alerting the occupants of the fire.
Fire crews at Fire Station 2, located near the hotel, were dispatched. When they arrived 2.5 minutes later they discovered that the hotel’s fire sprinkler system had not only controlled the fire, but had extinguished it, Barnes said.
“The fire protection systems did a fantastic job,” Barnes said. “It is always a relief to see the building occupants standing outside when fire crews arrive.”
Barnes said all of the hotel occupants were able to return to their rooms after the systems were reset. The estimated cost of fire damage is $300-$500, he said. Barnes praised hotel management for their diligence in keeping the systems maintained and operational.
The peak months for home heating fires are December, January and February, according to the National Fire Protection Association. The most dangerous time to have a fire is overnight, between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., Barnes said.
“Time passes very quickly when we sleep, but fire sprinklers and smoke alarms never sleep, protecting us 24-7,” Barnes said. “Test your smoke alarm today.”
The
Sprinkler Save at Georgetown University
From DC Fire PIO
Just before 7 p.m. on Sunday, December 6, 2009 units from the DC F&EMS were dispatched for the report of a building fire located near the intersection of
Responding firefighters found the lobby of the 5-story, fully sprinklered and fire-resistive building to be clear of obvious smoke. Upon further investigation, fire fighters found some smoke in the 3rd floor hallway with some moderate water conditions on the floor at which time they discovered a fire in room 321. There had been a sprinkler activation. The fire had been controlled and extinguished by one sprinkler head. The fire was contained to the area of origin, however some combustibles on a desktop, including a computer and other material ignited and caused considerable heat and smoke. Once the fire was confirmed to be out, shortly after the arrival of firefighters, the water to the sprinkler system was controlled and shut off.
Fire Investigators believe the fire was accidental, electrical in nature and was caused by an overloaded electrical power strip. Fire damage is estimated to be less than $1000. Water damage is still being assessed. At least two occupants from the room of origin will be displaced, however as many as 40 rooms were temporarily impacted due to affected utilities and electrical systems needing evaluation. There were no injuries. The fire protection and alarm systems worked as designed and the evacuation of the building's occupants went smoothly.
2 injured in Baltimore Co. apartment fire
Associated Press
11/18/09 10:20 AM EST
The county fire department says one person was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation, while another was taken to a local hospital with minor, non life-threatening injuries. Both are civilians.
A fire department spokesman says the fire started among discarded smoking materials in a trash can in an eighth-floor apartment at
Some residents had to be moved to other areas of the building for their safety.
The extent of the damage was not immediately known, but it included water damage because at least one sprinkler activated
Berkshire Mall evacuated after fire at Victoria's Secret
No injuries were reported.
The Berkshire Mall was evacuated Monday night after a fire broke out in the display window at the Victoria's Secret store, fire officials said.
The fire was reported to Berks County emergency dispatchers just before 8, and the mall was evacuated a short time later, said Wyomissing Fire Commissioner Bruce Longenecker.
The sprinkler system in the store and the nearby hallway activated, dousing flames until firefighters arrived.
Firefighters reported heavy smoke in the area of the store.
Most damage was from water and smoke inside the store, fire officials said. A damage estimate had not been set.
The mall, but not Victoria's Secret, is expected to be open for business today.
Police and Fire Blotter
Posted November 4, 2009 at 8 p.m.
A grease fire in an Abilene apartment was extinguished by the building's automatic sprinkler system.
Abilene firefighters were called to an apartment fire in the 1200 block of Yeoman's Road at about 1:30 p.m., according to a news release from Lt. Greg Goettsch.
The calling party reported a grease fire in the kitchen and subsequent callers stated a man, woman and baby were trapped on the third-floor balcony outside the apartment.
Units arrived six minutes after receiving the call to find the fire already extinguished by the building's automatic fire sprinkler system and the occupants had been able to safely exit the balcony through the apartment and out the front door. Due to the sprinkler system's quick activation there was no direct fire or heat damage to the apartment: only water damage and light smoke damage. All occupants escaped without injury.
Abilene Fire Department Investigators have ruled that his fire was accidental and due to overheating a pan of cooking oil on the stove. There is no damage estimate at the time of the release.
CITY OF FITCHBURG, WISCONSIN PRESS RELEASE
FITCHBURG, WI
On October 13, 2009, at 12:02 p.m., the City of Fitchburg Fire Department along with automatic and mutual aid units from the Town of Madison and Shorewood Hills Fire Departments responded to a reported kitchen fire at 2201 Post Road in Fitchburg.
Upon arrival, crews found an extinguished kitchen fire in a second floor apartment. The fire had been extinguished by a single automatic residential sprinkler head; and was extinguished so quickly that most residents of the building did not even know there was a fire.
Fire damage was confined to the kitchen of the fire apartment; mainly the stove and the ventilation fan directly above the stove. Water damage was limited to the fire apartment and the apartment directly below. One family was displaced. The Fairways property management team assisted the occupants with re-locating to another apartment within the complex. The automatic sprinklers stopped the fire so quickly there was no smoke damage outside the apartment of origin itself.
The resident of the fire apartment stated, “I didn’t like those things (sprinkler heads) that stuck out from the wall. Now I understand what they are and am extremely thankful that I had those in my apartment.”
All residents of the building were able to return to their apartments within 20 minutes of the alarm; with the exception of the residents of the fire apartment and those located directly below the fire apartment.
“The automatic residential sprinklers took what otherwise could have been a tragic major fire and made it a non-event, which is exactly what we hope for,” said Fitchburg Fire Chief Randall Pickering. “For residents to be back in their apartments, while the fire department is still cleaning up from the incident, it can not get much better than that.” Pickering noted that without the automatic residential sprinkler system being in place, the fire would have easily displaced dozens of residents and there would have been considerable damage to the building and resident’s personal belongings.
The building underwent renovation in 2007 and was retrofitted with the automatic residential sprinkler system and a new fire alarm system at that time.
The Fairways property management company had a restoration company on scene and the residential sprinkler system was back in operation before the fire department left the scene. No civilian or firefighter injuries were reported.
The fire was ruled accidental, and was caused by the inadvertent activation of a stove burner that contained a pan of grease that had been used earlier in the day. The kitchen was unoccupied at the time of the fire.
Questions regarding this incident can be directed to Fitchburg Fire Chief Randall Pickering at (608) 278-2980.
SPRINKLERS STOP FITCHBURG APARTMENT BLAZE
KITCHEN FIRE CONTAINED AT FAIRWAYS APARTMENT COMPLEX
FITCHBURG, Wis. -- A fire Tuesday at the Fitchburg Fairways apartment complex ended with minimal damage after fire sprinklers stopped the flames.
Fitchburg firefighters said the damage was limited to two apartments at the Post Road complex.
One family was displaced. Fire officials said the blaze could have been much worse had it not been for sprinklers installed in 2007.
Before the installation and some renovations, issues at the apartment complex caused concerns for residents.
In 2004, the city pressured the owners to clean up mold and fix cracked ceilings and walls.
SANTA ROSA: FIRE OFFICIALS SAY SPRINKLER SYSTEM SAVED HOME
SANTA ROSA (BCN)
Fire officials in Santa Rosa are crediting a sprinkler system with containing a residential fire that broke out late Wednesday night.
Units responded to a structure fire reported in a home at 1896 Bennett Meadows Lane just after 10 p.m., according to the Santa Rosa Fire Department.
Arriving firefighters reported finding a single fire sprinkler head flowing in a second-floor bedroom. Smoke alarms had not been activated, but the sprinkler system had apparently kept the flames from spreading, according to the fire department.
An investigation revealed that an unattended candle in the bedroom had come into contact with decorations and started a fire. A sprinkler in the room had been activated and contained the flames to that room. No one was home at the time.
The fire caused about $21,500 in damage to the structure and contents of the home, according to the fire department.
Since 2008, new homes constructed within Santa Rosa are required to have residential fire sprinklers.
