Porch Fire Illustrates the Value of Installing Fire Sprinkler Systems

By Assistant Chief – Safety, Training, & Technology Frank Wickham
Elsmere Fire Department

On Monday, March 30, 2015, at 7:00 p.m., the Elsmere Fire Department, along with other units from the town of Bethlehem, were dispatched to a confirmed porch fire in the town of Bethlehem. The building was a 200-foot by 60-foot, 10-unit apartment building in a new apartment complex. It was built using modern lightweight construction methods including trusses and vinyl siding.

When I first arrived, I saw significant smoke from the rear center of the building. When I did a 360-degree size up of the building I confirmed a fire on a porch located on the second level with possible extension into the apartment. My primary concern was life safety and I engaged the Bethlehem Police officers on scene to make sure everyone was evacuated. I noticed that the fire alarm had not activated and a number of people were still unaware of the situation in their building.

When I returned to the rear of the building, a residential fire sprinkler had just activated. I saw nothing but steam in the area that had just been engulfed in flames when I was inside the apartment. At that point the audible and visual fire alarms activated. To my surprise, damage was minimal and no one was injured. The water volume and pressure from the sprinkler system was more than adequate to quickly extinguish the fire.

I know that the governor and New York State Code Council are considering adoption of a new building code to require sprinkler systems in new homes. To me, this potentially lethal incident provided a real world example of the true value of installing fire sprinkler systems in all new residential structures.