Sprinkler Incident Analysis Reports - Great Saves!

Time and time again people’s lives are saved in fires from one simple element – sprinklers.  Read the following Sprinkler Incident Analysis Reports provided by the Editor of Fire Protection Contractor Magazine to hear about some truly Great Saves.

Save: Life
An article by Alexis Huicochea on September 2, 2007, in the Arizona Daily Star, Tucson, Arizona, said a man suffered second-degree burns when a cigarette apparently ignited a fire at his apartment in an assisted-living home. Sprinklers in the apartment went off, which helped firefighters keep the blaze confined to that single unit. “Had the building not had a sprink­ler system, that resident probably would’ve been dead,” Tucson Fire Department Captain Norm Carlton said.

Save: Apartment
An article on September 21, 2007, in the Camarillo Acorn, Camarillo, California said a fire started by an unattended candle in a Camarillo apartment could have been a disaster, but the combination of a working smoke detector and a properly installed and maintained fire sprinkler system resulted in the early discovery of the fire and limited its spread.

Save: Restaurant
An article on September 22, 2007, by Scott E. Williams, The Daily News, Galveston, Texas, said when the fire department got the call of a blaze at the Rainforest Café, the dispatcher added a detail to let firefighters know the call was real. "She said, ‘Be advised it is not the volcano," Battalion Chief Jens Jensen said.The faux volcano that decorates the restaurant has generated dozens of calls to the fire department because of the “smoke” it produces.

The fire started in the storeroom of the restaurant, where a worker was welding.

A spark from the welding fell onto a rubber display intended for the Rainforest’s Halloween display, which began to emit black smoke.Firefighters had put out the flames within minutes of their arrival [with] help from the restaurant’s sprinkler system."That sprinkler discharging kept the fire from spreading and kept it small enough for us to knock down quickly," Jensen said.

Save: Filtration Plant

An article on weau.com, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, on August 17, 2007, said a fire destroyed part of the Cummins Filtration Plant in Black River Falls. Everyone got out safely, but the fire department says the building has $100,000 in damage. Firefighters credit the five sprinklers in the building for containing the fire and say without them the entire building would have likely been lost.

Save: Nursing & Rehab Facility

An article on CapeCodToday.com, August 11, 2007, said firefighters responding to an automatic alarm at the Cape Heritage Nursing and Rehab in Sandwich, Massachusetts, discovered a fire in the laundry room area. Sprinklers controlled the fire. No evacuation was necessary and no one was injured.

Save: Movie Theater

An Associated Press article on wcmstations.com, August 19, 2007, saidauthorities are continuing their investigation into a fire at a Chattanooga movie theater. Staff members and off-duty police officers and firefighters who were at the theater evacuated patrons in about four minutes.

No one was hurt and the fire was extinguished by sprinklers.

Save: Cleaning Business

An article by Stan Finger on August 24, 2007, The Wichita Eagle, Wichita, Kansas, said building sprinklers helped contain a fire at a cleaning business.

Smoke filled the building as materials in storage carts holding floor mats and mop heads smoldered, Wichita Fire Captain Brad Crisp said, but the building sprinklers worked properly and limited the spread of the actual fire.

Save: Marriott Hotel

An August 23, 2007, article by Ed Tribble on KVOA.com, Tucson, Arizona, said 600 guests were evacuated from the luxury Starr Pass Marriott Resort.
The fire broke out about 5:00 p.m. The fire department says three linen carts in a storage room burned up. It set off the sprinkler system, which kept the fire from spreading. The fire department says everything went smoothly. The sprinklers did what they were supposed to.

Save: Shopping Mall

An article by Lindsey Cole on myKawartha.com, Canada, on August 28, 2007, said a small bathroom fire at Lansdowne Place Mall resulted in $2,000 damage, but could have been worse.

Firefighters responded to a report of alarms activated at the mall. When crews arrived they found the sprinkler system was activated and smoke was in the area. However, thanks to the sprinkler system, the fire was already out.

Save: Bowling Alley

The following is edited from a report by Battalion Chief, Steven D. Nash of the Solon, Ohio Fire Department. On August 6, 2007, the department responded to a bowling alley fire.

The crew went to the kitchen area where the fire was believed to be. Upon reaching this area, it was determined that a grease fire originated in a fryer and appeared to be under control.

It appeared the fryer had overheated. It caught fire and eventually activated the in-hood extinguishing system. This did not control the fire. A kitchen worker then attempted to extinguish it by using a dry chemical extinguisher which only pushed the flame up toward the ceiling. This activated a single sprinkler head which cooled the surrounding area and allowed the other extinguishing agents a chance to work. Without this sprinkler head, the $500 loss surely would have been much higher, and many lives would have been in peril. The establishment was back up and running later that day.

This building went through a major renovation several years ago. While the architects were trying to get around putting sprinklers in, the SFD Fire Prevention Bureau was persistent in their request for its installation. That investment more than paid for itself this day while allowing our members to return safely to their stations.