The cause has been ruled accidental, while the damage estimate remains under investigation after a blaze at the Canadian Tire store in Blenheim on Thursday.
Firefighters from Station #18 were called to the 20215 Communication Road store just after 6 a.m. and crews arrived on scene to a smoke filled building.
Station #11 – Ridgetown and Station #14 – Erieau were called to assist.
Firefighters conducted an interior attack and located the fire in the center of the store.
As firefighters began to extinguish the blaze the sprinkler system discharged, fire officials said.
“This incident has proven once again that fire suppression systems such as sprinklers provide another layer of defense against the dangers of fire,” stated Chris Case, assistant chief.
“The activation of the system in this case managed to contain the fire and prevent it spreading. Systems such as these protect lives and livelihoods.”
Fire officials say automatic sprinkler systems have sustained an enviable record of protecting life and property for over 100 years. Yet, there are still common misunderstandings about the operation and effectiveness of automatic fire sprinkler systems.
“A number of people believe that water damage from a sprinkler system will be more extensive than fire damage or that when a fire occurs every sprinkler head goes off,” stated Whitney Burk, public educator.
“This is not the case… water damage from a building sprinkler system is less severe than the damage caused by a fire that is able to spread and sprinkler heads are individually activated by temperature.”
– Photo credit: Chatham-Kent Fire & Emergency Services
