Fire chiefs in Grand County, Colorado, have joined forces, pushing to keep sprinkler requirements for all new one- and two-family homes in the latest edition of the International Building Code.
According to a report in the Sky-Hi Daily News, each fire chief in the district has signed a statement in support of the sprinkler requirements. “The sprinkler requirement is meant to save lives more than save homes,” said East Grand Fire Chief Todd Holzwarth. Today’s homes are many times made with lighter materials and engineered woods, which cause them collapse earlier in a fire.
See a recent NFPA Journal
A fire sprinkler system is a very effective way of protecting both property and lives. Statistics for properties with an automatic fire sprinkler system show dramatically reduced deaths and damage. Insurance companies may offer premium reductions if you have a fire protection sprinkler system installed so they may save outgoings in the long run too.
It is not uncommon for business properties such as warehouses to use a commercial fire sprinkler system which is usually activated by extreme heat, but it is not as common to find a property with a residential fire sprinkler system. Some larger buildings, such as blocks of flats do have a fire sprinkler system installation but average size houses rarely have them installed. This may be due to costs but a little investigation on line shows that prices are coming down and they can be a worthwhile investment. Whilst smoke alarms can warn you of a fire, they will do nothing to put it out and not everyone lives within a short distance of a fire station. By the time the emergency services have arrived it may be too late to save the property.
Home fire sprinkler systems can be integrated with alarms for double protection. As two breaths of toxic smoke could render someone unconscious this is an excellent idea and something new homes are beginning to be built with. Residential fire sprinkler systems generally run off mains water, whilst commercial systems sometimes involve a tank installation. This means that the cost of a residential system is often considerably lower.
If you are looking for a way to save lives, property and perhaps even insurance premiums then maybe you should look online to investigate the variety of automatic fire sprinkler systems that are available now.
COLUMBIA
State Historical Society of Missouri staff members this morning were trying to determine the extent of water damage to books and documents caused yesterday by a fire-sprinkler malfunction at Ellis Library.
No unique, one-of-a-kind materials were damaged, the historical society said in a news release.
Columbia firefighters responded at about 5:30 p.m. to the University of Missouri
BY DAVID KURASZ
COMMENTARY
New Jersey’s Department of Community Affairs (DCA) currently has a unique opportunity to approve proposed regulations that would mandate the installation of automatic fire sprinklers in all new homes beginning in 2012.
These regulations are the result of new lightweight construction and more flammable home contents which have created an alarming fire safety threat to our citizens, our fire professionals and our first responders.
The new code, the 2009 International Residential Code (IRC), is backed by the U.S. Fire Administration, the National Fire Protection Agency, as well as many other fire safety groups and officials, but even though almost 90% of all fire fatalities occur in the home, and at least 60,000 people are seriously injured in fires nationwide each year, home builders are aggressively fighting against these measures, knowing that their lightweight construction is putting their future home buyers at risk as well as the firefighters who bravely rush in to rescue people under collapsing roofs and floors.
In fact, the time to escape a fire has been reduced from 17 minutes to a terrifying 3 minutes over the past 20 years, fire deaths and injuries have increased, and the most vulnerable populations, infants, elderly and disabled citizens, are more at risk than ever.
These safety measures will not be adopted if the home builders have anything to say about it. Through the years, the home builders have refused to work with the State and fire protection advocates to understand the growing fire problem in New Jersey and to find solutions that effectively protect the lives and property of homeowners.
Instead, they continue to sell expensive upgrades, such as granite countertops, to home buyers, yet they claim automatic fire sprinklers, which wouldn’t cost more than new carpeting to install, are too expensive for the home buyer. In fact, the cost is estimated at $1.61 per square foot, which is approximately 1% of the value of the home, according to the FEMA benefit-cost analysis on residential fire sprinklers. When the cost is spread over a 30-year mortgage, it comes down to less then the price of a cup of coffee per week. This is a small price to pay when it comes to saving lives.
David Kurasz is the Executive Director of the New Jersey Fire Sprinkler Advisory Board
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Standing in front of side-by-side demonstration homes, Maryland state Fire Marshal Bill Bernard watches as the one without fire sprinklers goes up in flames, the
Fitchburg, WI suffered a fire today. What is remarkable about the blaze, or lack thereof, is the fact the apartment fire was a single room of a multiple unit complex.
The complex where the incident occurred, 2201 Post Road in the Fairways Apartments, underwent a residential sprinkler system retrofit in 2007. The fire broke out in a kitchen and extended to a vent, where it was contained by a single sprinkler head, with smoke damage contained to the unit of origin. The unit of origin and the unit below suffered water damage. The cause of this fire is believed to be from a pan of grease on the stove.
The fire was extinguished upon arrival of the fire department, with some residents unaware of the fire.
This fire is in stark contrast to a fire that occurred in July of this year, where an 81-year-old woman lost her life when the apartment complex where she lived caught fire. That complex did not have residential sprinklers, in violation of municipal code.
These two apartment fires dramatically demonstrate the need and efficacy of residential sprinkler systems.
The fire in July cost the life of a resident. The fire today, no one was injured.
The July fire was a 3 alarm fire that lasted for hours. The fire today was out before the first fire units arrived on scene.
The July fire resulted in the entire property deemed uninhabitable. The fire today was contained to single unit, and the damage limited to two units, with the remaining residents returning to their homes within hours.
Whenever the issue of residential fire sprinklers is brought to the front of local politics, this is a simple and profound comparison that occurred within a small Wisconsin city within months. It clearly demonstrates the need for residential sprinklers. It clearly demonstrates the level of safety provided by operating sprinklers.
Support your local fire department
On Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 4:20 a.m., the South Walton Fire District (SWFD) responded to a fire alarm activation at Emerald Coast Wine & Spirits located in the Watercolor Crossings shopping center.
The crew from the Watercolor station responded and arrived to find smoke issuing from the building. Upon entry into the building, the crews found that an electrical short had set several boxes on fire, which in turn, ignited the wall behind them.
The resulting heat from this fire activated a single sprinkler head located nearby, which extinguished the fire. SWFD crews were able to confirm that the fire had been completely extinguished and shut the water supply to the sprinkler off to minimize any damage caused by the flowing water.
Having a fire is every homeowner