At 14:22 hrs. on Tuesday afternoon, Burlington Fire Department responded to a fire alarm activation at 343 North Winooski Ave. Firefighters arrived in less than three minutes and found that a single sprinkler head had extinguished a grease fire in the kitchen of Unit 10, which nearly had tragic results.
One occupant had been preparing a meal and had heated some cooking oil in a sauce pot. She became distracted with table preparations and returned to the kitchen to discover that the oil had ignited. The fire intensified when the occupant removed the flaming pot from the stove, placed it on the rim of the sink, and sprayed tap water into the flame pot.
The mix of water and burning oil caused a veritable explosive reaction. The ensuing fire ball spread the atomized oil onto the wall and cabinets surrounding the sink area. Within moments the sprinkler head, directly over the occupant, activated and completely extinguished the fire. Simultaneously the fire alarm system, which electronically monitors the sprinkler system, immediately notified the Fire Department and sounded the building’s fire alarm.
The occupant was most fortunate in that she did not suffer any obvious burn injuries. However, Firefighters did treat her for respiratory difficulties resulting from exposure to the fire and smoke. She was transported to FAHC by Fire Department ambulance. The second occupant in the apartment was uninjured. Firefighters were able to immediately stop the flow of water to the single activated sprinkler head and cleared the smoke from the apartment.
Clean up crews were at work in less than two hours, removing water from flooring and cleaning light smoke stains from the walls and cabinets in the kitchen. There was no smoke, heat or fire damage to any other part of the two bedroom apartment. Nor was there any damage to the other 11 units in the apartment building. The occupants of Unit 10 should be back in the apartment in less than a week. The building, part of the Bus Barn Housing Complex, is owned by Champlain Housing Trust. Damage is estimated at less than $ 5,000.
As we come to the end of Fire Protection Week, this fire demonstrates the importance of a family actively practicing fire prevention, and the significance of having fire sprinklers in the home. These occupants made several critical errors. Do not leave the stove unattended when cooking, use a tight fitting lid to cover a burning pot or use a fire extinguisher on a grease fire (there was a fully operational fire extinguisher in plain sight, within three feet of the sink). NEVER pour water into burning grease or oil. In this case, if you can’t easily extinguish the fire using an appropriate extinguisher, leave immediately. Stay low, go outside and call for help when safely outside. Unfortunately these occupants did not follow these important steps. Fortunately, there were fire protection systems (a working sprinkler system, smoke & fire alarm systems and automatic fire department notification) built into this apartment. building. These systems in combination with early intervention by the Fire Department kept damages to a minimum.