A fire broke out Thursday, May 23, 2024 at the Home Depot in Rochester, Minnesota at around 6 p.m. Police are investigating the fire as apparent arson.
"It was determined that someone had intentionally set a fire in the back of the store," a news release from the Rochester Police Department said. The fire set off two sprinkler heads, which were effective in keeping the fire from spreading. The Fire Group, Inc. maintains these sprinklers. Our service technicians arrived as soon as we were called, replaced the heads, and got the Home Depot in Rochester back to full fire protection so that they could open the next day. Sprinklers do save lives and protect property. The Rochester Police Department reported that the fire department utilized 500 gallons of water to extinguish the fire. The Rochester Fire Department reported in a news release that it was called to the store for a report of cardboard on fire inside the building by the lumber door. There was fire reportedly fire burning in the racks when the fire department arrived. When the temperature is hot enough to set off the fire sprinklers, the water will spray in order to keep the temperature down and make it possible for the fire department and others to respond and put out the fire. The fire department reported that bystanders attempted to help put out the fire before they arrived. In this case, the fire did get hot enough to set off the sprinklers. No one was hurt in the fire, although the fire department had one person evaluated for smoke inhalation. A sprinkler system is vital to protect businesses from arson. For maintenance, inspection, or installation of fire sprinklers, contact The Fire Group, Inc. Comments are closed.
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