Sprinklers Avert Catastrophic Fire, Says Fire Marshal

Fire sprinklers in a Journey of Faith Church building limited the damage to the facility last week, said David Carmany, Manhattan Beach city manager. 

Investigators have identified the fire source as heat from a large commercial vacuum cleaner stored near combustible paper goods, he said.

When Manhattan Beach firefighters arrived on scene in response to a commercial fire alarm, building occupants told them smoke was coming from a first-floor storage room. Firefighters entered the storage room and found burnt maintenance supplies extinguished by the room’s fire sprinkler system.

“This would have been far more damaging if not for the sprinkler system extinguishing the fire," said Manhattan Beach Fire Marshal Lou Petroni. "Fire sprinklers in homes and businesses are very effective in extinguishing fires in the early stages of burning. Properly installed and maintained fire sprinklers can save lives and reduce property damage.” 

Below is information provided by the National Fire Protection Association:

• If you have a reported fire in your home, the risk of dying decreases by about 80 percent when sprinklers are present
• People in homes with sprinklers are protected against significant property loss; sprinklers reduce the average property loss by about 71 percent per fire.
• Home sprinkler systems respond quickly to reduce the heat, flames and smoke from a fire, giving families valuable time to get to safety.

For information about commercial and residential fire protection systems,  contact the Manhattan Beach Fire Department at (310) 802-5203 or the Fire Marshal’s Office at (310) 802-5206.