Sprinkler News
North Wales Sprinkler Stop - Retail
NORTH Wales Fire and Rescue Service is highlighting the benefits of sprinkler systems after a fire at the Dorothy Perkins store on Broughton Shopping Park on Thursday 24 June
Fire crews from Wrexham and Deeside arrived at the store at 8am, when they found the sprinkler system had been activated.
The fire, which was caused by a faulty electrical light fitting in the ground floor fitting rooms, damaged the light fitting and changing room cubicle.
Kevin Brain, from North Wales Fire and Rescue Service, said: “This incident clearly highlights how sprinkler systems can stop a fire in its tracks – saving lives and protecting property.
“
Kevin Brain, from North Wales Fire and Rescue Service, said: “This incident clearly highlights how sprinkler systems can stop a fire in its tracks – saving lives and protecting property.
“The faulty light fitting began to overheat causing a fire to break out. As the fire intensified and the temperature increased, the automatic sprinkler system was activated and effectively extinguished the fire. Without the system, the fire could have spread quickly and caused the complete loss of stock in the store, substantial damage to the building and adjacent buildings, as well as endangering lives.
“Automated fire sprinklers offer excellent protection. Smoke alarms have saved lives on numerous occasions although the alarm raised depends upon the ability of the individual to escape the property.
“Sprinklers attack a fire in its very early stages and can prevent it from spreading and causing injury or loss of life and damage to the premises.
“The systems are incredibly sophisticated and cases of false activation are extremely rare. Although stock at the store was damage by water from the sprinklers, in fact, the water released by a sprinkler generally causes much less damage to a building and its contents than the amount of water used by firefighters tackling an advanced fire, not to mention the damage that would be caused by the smoke.
“And of course, had this store not been protected by sprinklers, the building may have been severely damaged causing the store to close with the loss of numerous jobs and livelihoods.”
Posted on: Tuesday 20 July 2010